Boswell and Dr Johnson met Rorie, as he was known, his wife and his son Donald at dinner on September 2, 1773, during their visit to Sir Alexander Macdonald in Armadale. Boswell described him as "an old brisk Highlander of 68, a near relation of Alexander's". Two days later, Rorie and his wife dined with them again, and Boswell wrote in his journal that "Rorie was to be dispossessed of his farm in Glenelg at Whitsunday, and was trying to get one from Sir Alexander." They were later joined by his sons James, who was Sir Alexanders factor for Sleat, and Donald, a Lieutenant in the Grenadiers.
On September 5th, Boswell walked with Sir Alexander and Rorie to the parish church of Sleat, where they saw the monument to Sir Alexander's older brother James (d. 1766). After dinner they went to the house of Rorie's son James, where they were joined by his other son Douglas and daugher Katie. In his journal, Boswell acknowledged that he "drank freely of punch by way of being social, and after supper I drank freely of port by way of keeping off a taedium vitae. Altogether, I had too much."