From March to June 1936 he stayed in the Rhinns (mostly at Port Charlotte where he lived with a family who spoke idiomatic Gaelic.

He visited other parts of the Gaelic- and English-speaking Highlands, especially the Isle of Skye from July to August 1935, where he became acquainted with the common speech of the "Strath" between Broadford and Torrin.

During this time, he amassed a significant collection of vocabulary, knowledge and tradition from the last regularly Scottish Gaelic-speaking generation in particular the southern dialects of Kintyre, Arran and Argyll whose speakers had mostly died by the 1950s.

[1] He published several books and articles on the topic[3] and this material is the largest body of evidence for how this dialect was used and spoken in everyday life.

[7] His work was helpful in the efforts of the Ngabu Bingayi Aboriginal Corporation to promote study of the language at Kempsey TAFE.