Haines is a well-off Englishman from Oxford, staying with Buck Mulligan and Stephen Dedalus at Martello Tower. A secondary character that first appears in Telemachus, Stephen and Mulligan discuss him beginning on page 8 of the comic but he does not appear bodily until page 31.

 
Haines seems to be in Ireland to satisfy a kind of curiosity about the culture there. He sympathizes superficially with the problems English colonialism has caused there, but distances himself from them as well, saying “history is to blame.” He speaks Gaelic and dabbles both in religion and literature. But, when he attempts to engage Stephen on these topics, he finds himself rather outmatched.

 
Stephen thinks of Haines as a kind of usurper, taking his place at Martello tower.

Fun Fact: Rob modelled Haines off of late-night comedian Stephen Colbert.