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MAY 1913, FARMERSVILLE, TEXAS, USA, SILBIE, SID AND CLYDE LATHAM:

Brief summary of the event and follow-up:

It is the grandson of the one of the three witnesses who contacted the ufologists of the CUFOS in 1978 to report a strange event that was previously only known about in the family circle:

In May 1913 or 1914 at 10 in the morning in a farm of Texas within 2.5 miles of Farmersville, Silbie Latham, aged 12, 13 or 14, and his brothers Sid and Clyde, were busy "chopping cotton," when they heard their two dogs Bob and Fox barking, Silbie testifying thereafter that the barking was like if they were in distress.

As the dogs did not stop howling, the older brother, Clyde, said: "let's see what's going on with these animals. They seem quite shaken."

The dogs were at some 20 meters, on the other side of a wood enclosure, and Clyde arrived the first on the spot and was the first to discover that what excited the dogs was a "small man" that the dogs had cornered and who did not seem to react to their presence. Clyde then called his brothers.

The small man "seemed like somebody who stopped for a halt. He looked in the direction of the north. He did not measure more than 45 centimeters and was of a kind of dark green. He did not wear clothes. All on him seemed made of rubber of green color, including his hat." This hat was at the back of his head and was described as like a small sombrero and being shaped together with the remainder of the rubber-like skin or tight-fitting suit of the little character. His arms hung downwards along the body.

When the three brothers arrived on the spot, the dogs jumped at the character and shredded him to pieces, leaving only red blood and internal organs of human appearance on the grass.

When he was asked why they had not prevented their dogs from doing that, Silbie Latham stated: "We are only country folks and we did not know what to do with all that", and "we must have been too much surprised."

The three brothers went back working while going from time to time to look at the remainders of the character on the grass, while the dogs pressed themselves against them as if they had been frightened. When they reconsidered the place the next day, all traces of the remainder of the small man had disappeared. The boys spoke with their folks about the event but were not believed.

In January 1978, Lawrence Jones, the grandson of Silbie Latham, contacted the J. Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies in Chicago, and indicated "My grandfather had the reputation not to be afraid of the truth and having nothing to hide, but he never told this story outside the family by fear of being ridiculed. He agreed to tell his story only after I insisted much and because it was me. He knows that I am impassioned of history. I am sure that he would agree undergo the lie detector or to be hypnotized. I do not doubt a minute that he tells the truth." CUFOS had Silbie Latham interviewed in April 1978 by Larry Sessions of the Museum of Natural History of Fort Worth.

Basic information table:

Narratives:

[Ref. cb1:] CHARLES BERLITZ:

The author tells of a case he says to have occurred in May 1913 in a farm of Texas of the name of Farmersville.

Silbie, Sid and Clyde Latham, three brothers, were busy chopping cotton, when they heard their two dogs Bob and Fox bark. Silbie thereafter testified that there was "like distress in their moanings." As the dogs did not cease howling, the older brother Clyde said: "let's go check what is going on with the dogs. They seem pretty shaken."

The dogs were within some twenty meters, on the other side of a wood enclosure, Clyde arrived the first on the place and was the first to discover that what excited the dogs was "a little man." He then called his brothers.

Silbie Latham told later to "Larry Sessions of the Museum of Natural History of Fort Worth", than this little man "looked like somebody who stopped for a halt. It looked in the direction of the north. It did not measure more than 45 centimeters and was of a kind of dark green. It did not wear clothing. All on him seemed makes of rubber, including its hat."

When the three brothers arrived on the spot, the dogs rushed at the creature and shredded it to pieces, leaving only red blood and internal organs of human appearance on the grass.

When he was asked why they had not prevented their dogs from doing that, Silbie Latham explained: "We are just country guys and we did not know what to do with all this story", and "we must have been too much surprized."

The three brothers went back to work while merely, from time to time, throwing a glance at the remainders on the grass, while the dogs stayed very close to them as if they had been frightened. When they looked at the place again the next day all traces of remainder of the small man had disappeared.

Lawrence Jones, the grandson of Silbie Latham, contacted the J. Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies in Chicago, and indicated "My grandfather had the reputation not to fear the truth and having nothing to hide, but he never told this story outside the family by fear of being ridiculed. It agreed to tell this story only after I insisted much and because it was me who asked. He knows that I am a history buff. I am sure that he would agree to undergo lie detection or to be hypnotized. I do not doubt a minute that he does tell the truth."

[Ref. bb1:] JANET AND COLIN BORD:

The authors indicate that three farm boys saw a nude, rubbery-looking "little man" in May 1913 near Farmersville, Texas. The incident was only publicized, however, in 1978, when the witness, Silbie Latham, was a grandfather. In 1913, Silbie was twelve years old, chopping cotton with his two brothers on the family farm. Hearing their dogs howling, they found a little man only 18 inches tall. He wore no clothes except a "little round hat" resembling a Mexican hat that seemed "built onto him." His arms hung down just beside him. Everything "looked like a rubber suit including the hat," The boys' dogs jumped on the little man and tore him to pieces, and he seemed to have human internal organs. Next day when the boys visited the spot where the bloody remains had lain, there was no trace of them.

In January 1978, Silbie's grandson Lawrence Jones wrote the Chicago-based Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS) describing the incident, which had been discussed in the family for many years. In April, 1978, at CUFOS' request, Larry Sessions of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History interviewed Silbie Latham at length.

[Ref. jc1:] JEROME CLARK:

Jerome Clark indicates that a most bizarre and unpleasant incident near Farmersville, Texas surface in 1978 when the informant's grandson brought the report to the attention of the Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS) and said, "My grandfather has a most solid reputation for trUth and honesty but has never told of this because of fear of ridicule. He has agreed to tell this only after much prompting and encouragement from me, his history-oriented grandson."

Larry Sessions of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History was later sent by CUFOS to interview the witness. Though he did not accept the tale at face value, Sessions said there was no doubt of the old man's sincerity or sanity.

In May 1913, Silbie Latham, then 12 years old, his brothers Sid and Clyde, and the rest of the family lived on a cotton farm two and a half miles west of Farmersville.

One morning as they were out chopping cotton, Silbie recalled, their dogs Bob and Fox, 50 to 75 feet away on the other side of a picket fence, began barking "just like they was in a terrible distress," and this soon escalated into a "deathly howl."

Finally the three boys stopped their labors and went to investigate, and were shocked to find a little man who, said Silbie, "looked like he was sitting on something. He was looking toward the north. He was no more than 18 inches high and kind of a dark green color. He was the same smooth color all over. He didn't seem to have any shoes on, but I don't really remember his feet. His arms were hanging down just beside him, like they were growed down the side of him. He had on a kind of hat that reminded me of a Mexican hat. It was a little round hat that looked like it was built onto him. He didn't have on any clothes."

"Everything looked like a rubber suit including the hat. He just stood still. I guess he was just scared to death. Right after we got there, the dogs jumped him."

The dogs tore him to piece, red blood spilled everywhere, and the little man's insides, which looked like human organs, fell to the ground.

As the boys stood watching, the animals bit his legs off. If he made any sounds as he was being killed, the Lathams could not hear them because of the racket the dogs were making.

The boys returned to their hoeing and discussed the incident among themselves. They went back to the spot two or three times to check the remains, and all the while the dogs huddled close by them as if frightened. The next day all traces of the strange little man were gone.

Jerome Clark says the source is "Evans, 1978." and "Evans, Alex, pseudonym of Jerome Clark, "Encounters with little men" in Fate 31,11 November 1978, pages 83-86.

[Ref. ar1:] ALBERT ROSALES:

Albert Rosales indicates that at 2.5 miles West of Farmersville, Texas, in early May 1914, at 10:00 a.m., Silbie J. Latham, then aged 13 or 14, had gone to the fields with his two older brothers Sid and Clyde with their two dogs, Bob and Fox.

They were "chopping cotton" when they heard the two dogs set up a "deathly howl." The three boys then walked about 75 feet to a fencerow where the dogs had cornered something. Clyde got there first and turned to the other two and said, "Boys, there's something in there. It must be something kinda bad." Then he said, "Boys, it's a little man!"

Silbie looked and saw a little man some 18 inches high, just standing still, staring toward the north. He was green all over and either naked or with a frogman's type outfit on, of green color. He has a hat with a wide brim on the back of his head, but it was all of one piece with the rest of the body. He said nothing and he did not even acknowledge the dogs, by now worked up to a frenzy.

Right after the three boys arrived, the dogs finally attacked the being, literally tearing it limb from limb. "Blood and guts went everywhere. The blood was red and the guts looked like guts look. We were all just country as hell and didn't know what to do... The dogs just chewed him to pieces... After they killed him we just went back to hoeing."

The boys told their folks about the event but were not believed. They went back to the site several times that day, but after that they never returned.

Albert Rosales indicates that his source is the Humcat case 1914-5 from Ted Bloecher.

[Ref. js1:] JEAN SIDER:

The author says that in 1913, in the morning, in Farmersville, Texas, United States, Silbie Latham, 12-year-old, and his two brothers Sid and Clyde were alerted by the frantic barking of their dogs and went to see what was the cause fot his, and distinguished a tiny human being, 18 inches tall, wearing a sort of rubber outfit with a large hat, Mexican style. The being stood motionless, looking to the north. Suddenly the unleashed dogs attacked the creature tore it to pieces. Blood and organs like ours, but smaller, were all over the soil. The next day they went to the site but there was nothing left of the slaughter.

Jean Sider indicates that the source is Strange Magazine #10 page 7 in 1992 according to J. Clark citing Alex Evans in Fate vol. 31, #1 for November 1978 pages 83-86 with the headline "Encounters with Little Men".

[Ref. pr1:] PETER ROGERSON:

Points to consider:

The story is of obviously high strangeness, with the little character not reacting to dogs eating him up and the witnesses' difficulties to discriminate whether it was naked of wearing some sort of rubber suit. Not the least intriguing is the "hat", obviously a tentative description of what does not really seem to be a hat.

It is most unfortunate that the lengthy interview by Larry Sessions is not at hand; without this possibly rich piece of information, not much can be said on the occurrence.

It must be noted that only one of the three witnesses could be interviewed, that this was decades after the event - which was however apparently a story that had been discussed in the family - and that no UFO was seen.

List of issues:

Evaluation:

Insufficient data.

Sources references:

* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.

• [---] ? Larry Sessions.
• [---] ? "Encounters with Little Men", article by "Alex Evans" (aka Jerome Clark), in Fate magazine, pp 83-85, November 1978.
• [---] ? "HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports", case 1914-5, compiled by David F. Webb and Ted Bloecher, CUFOS, USA, 1978.
• [cb1] * "Charles Berlitz' World of Strange Phenomena", book by Charles Berlitz, Charles Berlitz and the Stoneson Press, Inc., USA, 1988.
• [cb1] * "Les Phénomènes Etranges du Monde", book by Charles Berlitz, translation of "Charles Berlitz' World of Strange Phenomena", Editions du Rocher, France, pp 317-318, 1989.
• [bb1] * "Unexplained Mysteries of the 20th Century", book by Janet and Colin Bord, Contemporary Books publisher, pp. 146-147, 1989.
• [bb1] * "Unexplained Mysteries of the 20th Century", book by Janet and Colin Bord, McGraw-Hill publishers, 1990.
• [jc1] * "Close Encounters of the Third Kind, 1901-1959 - The Emergence of a Phenomenon", article by Jerome Clark, in Strange magazine, #10, pp 87-88, 1992.
• [ar1] * "1910-1919 Humanoid Reports", compilé par Albert Rosales, circa 2002, at www.ufoinfo.com/humanoid/humanoid1910.shtml
• [js1] * "Les 'Extraterrestres' avant les Soucoupes Volantes", book by Jean Sider, JMG publisher, France, pp 197-198, 2007.
• [pr1] * "INTCAT 1901 - 1919 - International Catalog of Entity Reports", by Peter Rogerson, U-K., 2013, at intcat.blogspot.fr/2012/08/intcat-1901-1920.html

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