“I didn’t know then that young girls were a sort of poison, infectious to the man of age; and that men of age justly take woman of age to cure themselves of the diseases of youth.”

Roman Payne is a British journalist and author of the 20th century. He worked primarily as a war correspondent, covering conflicts in Europe and Asia, and later wrote memoirs that offered vivid, firsthand accounts of military life and the human cost of war. His writing often blended reportage with reflective insight, making complex events accessible to a broad audience.