The Long Hillside: A Christmas Hare-Hunt In Old Virginia

In Short

This narrative captures a single, eventful Christmas day in mid-nineteenth-century Virginia, centering on a group of boys—both white and Black—and their motley pack of dogs. What begins as a structured pursuit of "molly cottontails" quickly devolves into a series of mishaps, involving accidental injuries, forbidden dogs, and an ill-fated chase of the plantation’s sheep. It is a nostalgic, atmospheric sketch of boyhood freedom, social hierarchy, and the enduring rituals of the Southern plantation life, preserved as a window into a vanished world.

The Story

The story opens on a crisp, frosty Saturday before Christmas in the 1860s. For the boys on the plantation, hares are the natural game of childhood, a sport distinct from the formal bird-hunting of the "gentlemen." As the morning dawns, the atmosphere is electric with anticipation. A diverse group, including the white boys and several Black youths, gathers near the kitchen, accompanied by a ragtag collection of dogs ranging from prized pointers to nondescript curs. The group is led by "Uncle Limpy-Jack," an older man with a physical disability who holds a position of authority as the resident hunter.

The hunt begins with high expectations, but the morning is marked by a series of comic failures. The dogs prove largely inept at trailing, and the hares frequently outsmart the hunters. Tension emerges between the boys, who are eager for glory, and Uncle Limpy-Jack, who jealously guards his status as the only one permitted to carry a gun. When a hare finally appears, the boys’ amateurish shooting misses the mark, though a well-thrown stick from a boy named Milker-Tim eventually secures a catch.

As the day progresses, the situation worsens. In a chaotic attempt to shoot a hare, a boy named Peter accidentally hits one of the family’s prized pointers, Don, in the ear. The group is forced to pause and perform emergency "surgery" on the dog, bribing Uncle Limpy-Jack into silence with promises of future spoils. Moments later, another boy, Met, accidentally peppers Uncle Limpy-Jack himself with birdshot, causing the old man to collapse in a theatrical display of agony.

The climax of the hunt occurs on "the long hillside," where the dogs, sensing excitement, break their discipline and begin chasing the plantation’s prize Southdown sheep. The boys scramble to intervene, but the damage is done; the scene is witnessed from the house. Returning home in disgrace, the group anticipates punishment. They are ushered to an upstairs room to await their fate at the hands of the adults. When the owner of the pointers arrives to deliver judgment, he confronts the boys with the gravity of their disobedience. However, the tension breaks when one of the boys, Met, cleverly invokes the spirit of Christmas, pleading for a "second chance." The adult’s resolve dissolves into laughter, and the boys are pardoned, allowing the holiday festivities to proceed.

How It Unfolds

The morning ritual The boys wake to a frosty landscape and gather at the kitchen, where they assemble their motley pack of dogs and long-barreled guns. The mood is one of high-spirited competition, with every participant bragging about their expected success.

The unsuccessful start The group beats the ditch banks and brush, but the hares remain elusive or safely hidden. The dogs prove to be more of a hindrance than a help, leading to general derision among the hunters.

The first success After several missed opportunities and erratic shooting, Milker-Tim finally catches a hare using a well-aimed stick. The success is short-lived, however, as the boys clash over who deserves the credit for the hunt.

The escalating accidents The hunt takes a dark turn when Peter accidentally shoots the family pointer, Don, in the ear. The situation goes from bad to worse when Met inadvertently wounds Uncle Limpy-Jack with a stray shot, leading to a desperate negotiation to keep the incident quiet.

The final chaos The group reaches the long hillside, where the hunting finally turns productive, but the excitement causes the dogs to run the plantation’s sheep. The resulting scene is witnessed by the adults, leading to the boys' forced retreat to the house.

The Christmas pardon Facing stern discipline, the boys are confronted by the plantation owner. When Met asks for another chance in the spirit of the holiday, the owner is charmed into forgiving them, restoring peace.

The People

The boys, both white and Black, act as a collective protagonist defined by their shared hunger for adventure. They are impulsive, eager to imitate adult hunters, and constantly jockeying for social standing within their informal group.

Uncle Limpy-Jack serves as the foil to the boys. As the only one allowed to carry a gun, he occupies a unique, self-important position. He is curmudgeonly and prone to dramatic outbursts, yet he is clearly an essential mentor to the children, even if he constantly complains about their presence.

Milker-Tim stands out for his practical skill, showing that he can succeed where the others fail by using his wits and a simple stick rather than a gun.

Don and the other pointers represent the unattainable ideal of the hunt. Their pedigree and training make them the "princes" of the pack, and their inclusion in the hunt is the central transgression that brings the boys into trouble.

The plantation owner appears only at the end, acting as the embodiment of moral authority. He begins the final scene as a stern figure of judgment but reveals a softening, paternal side when he is outmaneuvered by the boys' appeal to holiday tradition.

In Its Own Voice

"They were peculiarly our game; I mean we used to consider that they belonged to us boys."

The narrator reflects on the proprietary sense of ownership that he and his friends felt toward the hares they hunted.

"He betrayed his pleasure only once, when, as he measured out the shot from an old rag into his seamed palm, he said with a nod of his head: 'Y' all kin run ole hyahs; de ole man' shoots 'em.'"

The author highlights the pride Uncle Limpy-Jack takes in his marksmanship after he manages to bag a hare that the boys had missed.

What It's Really About

At its core, the book explores the transition from childhood to adulthood and the tension between freedom and responsibility. The hunt serves as a crucible for the boys, where they attempt to assume adult roles—using guns, managing a pack, and asserting authority—only to find that they lack the necessary discipline. The narrative also examines the rigid social structures of the plantation, where the hierarchy between the white children, the Black children, and elders like Uncle Limpy-Jack is both maintained and blurred by the shared, lawless pursuit of the hunt. Finally, it addresses the power of tradition, suggesting that the spirit of Christmas provides a necessary reprieve from the harsh realities of discipline and the consequences of one's actions.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy vivid, atmospheric prose will appreciate the way the author captures the sensory details of a Virginia winter—the "burnished steel" of the sunset, the scent of the pine woods, and the sound of the hounds in full cry. The book offers a deeply nostalgic, if occasionally idealized, look at a lost world of rural American boyhood.

However, modern readers should be prepared for the period-specific attitudes and the heavy use of dialect in the characters' dialogue. The depiction of the Black youths and Uncle Limpy-Jack reflects the era's social norms and racial dynamics, which may feel jarring or insensitive to contemporary sensibilities. The book does not shy away from these complexities, and it is best approached as a historical artifact of its time.

Those who read it today will likely be struck by the enduring nature of the boys' desperation to avoid punishment and the universal appeal of a story about a group of children trying to prove their worth. It is a brief, focused read that rewards those interested in the social history of the South and the classic themes of childhood mischief. It stays with you as a portrait of a day that begins in high-minded expectation and ends in the gentle, if hard-earned, grace of forgiveness.