Who is R. from Collected Short Stories Volume Three?

R. is the colonel in the Intelligence Department who first approaches Ashenden about a job as a spy. R.'s real identity is never revealed in the course of the short stories. He is known simply as R., with the exception of one letter to Ashenden where he refers to himself with the pen name of Raymond. R. has a habit of telling Ashenden that one should do what he can to "mitigate the hardships of war" (p. 86). Although R. is respected by Ashenden, it is indicated by the story "The Hairless Mexican" that he does not always choose his employees wisely. Although R. believes that the Mexican will be able to do his job as instructed, the Mexican instead kills the wrong person.

R. appears in almost every story with the exception of "Sanatorium" and "Mr. Harrington's Washing." He generally appears at the beginning of each story where he introduces Ashenden to his new job or assignment. In these meetings R. usually gives Ashenden some important information about his upcoming job, then disappears for the rest of the story. It is shown in R.'s letter to Ashenden about the fictional "Aunt Maggie" that R. does have a sense of humor. However, R. does not seem to exercise this sense of humor very often.