Donald found fault with him, and in the quarrel that followed the man said, "I will be avenged for this, alive or dead".
It was on the hill that Donald first met with the bocan, but he soon came to closer quarters, and haunted the house in a most annoying fashion.

He injured the members of the household, and destroyed all the food, being especially given to dirtying the butter (a thing quite superfluous, according to Captain Burt's description of Highland butter).

On one occasion a certain Ronald of Aberardair was a guest in Donald's house, and Donald's wife said, "Though I put butter on the table for you tonight, it will just be dirtied".

"I will go with you to the butter-keg," said Ronald, "with my dirk in my hand, and hold my bonnet over the keg, and he will not dirty it this night." So the two went together to fetch the butter, but it was dirtied just as usual.
Things were worse during the night and they could get no sleep for the stones and clods that came flying about the house.

"The bocan was throwing things out of the walls, and they would hear them rattling at the head of Donald's bed." The minister came (Mr.John Mor MacDougall was his name) and slept a night or two in the house, but the bocan kept away so long as he was there.