The article below was published in the daily newspaper Le Charollais-Dimanche, France, page 12, on September 19, 1954.
See the case file.
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While waiting for August 1956—that is to say, in two years’ time—when the giant telescopes (currently being built) available to astronomers will make it possible to penetrate the secrets of the planet Mars, a statistic has just established that, from 1943 to 1952, men have seen with their own eyes, and while in full possession of their faculties, one hundred and ninety-two flying saucers.
This statistic is the work of the Documentation Office of the U.S.A. It does not take into account appearances of this kind that have occurred in Europe; for the past year they have been multiplying in truly singular proportions.
In France, flying saucers have been reported in the North and along the Armorican coast. They have been seen in the center of the country and, at the very gates of Saint-Etienne, several people have been witnesses, during the past week, to a positively extraordinary event.
THE MYSTERIOUS EGG
People indeed claim to have seen land not far from them a reddish-colored craft shaped like an egg whose two ends appeared flattened and whose shell seemed to offer no protuberances.
Its length was said to be about ten meters and its diameter three.
Propelling itself in a manner that defies common understanding, this flying egg reportedly signaled its landing and departure only by a faint purring sound comparable to that of a young cat.
Its speed of movement was said to have been such that it literally vanished before the astonished eyes of the inhabitants of Saint-Etienne in front of whom it had landed. They distinguished only a kind of red luminosity rising into the starry vault in a direction which, relative to where they were standing, seemed indeed to be that of the planet Mars.
BREAKDOWN
On the night of Wednesday, September 15, around 12:15 a.m., Mr. Frédéric Veldemant, the well-known artist from Saint-Etienne, his daughter Lisianne, his son-in-law Mr. Jo Poletto, and one of their friends, Mr. Arnaud, were returning by car from Craintilleux where the theatrical troupe had given a performance.
The sky was dark and cloudy, but here and there a few stars were shining. Mr. Veldemant was driving the vehicle. The car’s lights suddenly went out due to a bad contact as the automobile approached the quarries located between Rivas and the aforementioned locality. Mr. Veldemant got out to carry out the repair that had become necessary.
A PURRING SOUND AND A REDDISH GLOW
"Hardly had I set foot on the ground when I heard above me a kind of purring. An enormous shape which, in the darkness, gave off a faint reddish glow passed over my head at a distance I could not assess and came to land, not far from the Loire, about two hundred meters from my car. From where we were, this thing, now motionless, appeared to have an ovoid shape and shone softly. It looked like a cigar, tapered at both ends, which had been entirely in combustion beneath a thin layer of ash...
THE FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN
The occupants of the vehicle, dumbfounded, contemplated this strange apparition. They did not quite know what to do and spoke in low voices, fearing that some obscure threat might suddenly materialize. This gripping anguish, all those who have found themselves in the presence of a flying saucer have apparently felt it. For the people of Saint-Etienne, no doubt was possible: they were indeed face to face with one of those unusual craft whose presence is currently being reported everywhere.
After some time, Messrs. Veldemant and Poletto decided to take action.
The first seized a flashlight and, followed by the second, cautiously made his way into the meadows toward the thing which was still shining and remained motionless.
Bending behind bushes, concealing themselves as best they could among the dense shadows, the two men covered three-quarters of the distance separating them from the flying egg. Suddenly, they threw themselves flat onto the ground.
THE UNNAMEABLE "THING"
But let us once again give the floor to Mr. Frédéric Veldemant, whom we interviewed at his establishment, currently located Place de la Rivière...
"We were no more than about fifty meters, at most, from the flying saucer—if flying saucer it was. From where we stood, we were able to assess its dimensions and exact shape (see above). Thus we realized that, on the side facing us, there was no opening in the luminous shell. It seemed hermetically sealed and continued to purr softly. This noise had become increasingly perceptible as we drew nearer. But it was not because of the mysterious egg that we had literally pressed ourselves against the damp grass. It was because of something that seemed infinitely more dangerous than that inert mass...
A SHAPE IN THE NIGHT
Messrs. Frédéric Veldemant and Poletto, upon emerging into the quarry, had almost collided with a tall shape, rather menacing in appearance, human only in its outline, which stood upright with arms raised in the meadow.
No more than three strides separated it from the courageous men of Saint-Etienne.
This situation could not last. As the "shape" did not seem inclined to move, Mr. Veldemant, summoning all his courage, aimed his flashlight at what stood before him while at the same time springing to his feet and pressing the switch.
LIKE THE EYES OF A FLY
Let us listen again to Messrs. Veldemant and Poletto:
"The light flooded the human shape, which then appeared to us to be that of a sort of diver. This thing measured at least two meters in height and all around what seemed to be its head it wore a faceted helmet. Like the eyes of a fly. When the beam of our lamp struck one of the helmet’s portholes with its harsh light, we distinguished a pallid face bearing a pointed nose above which—yes, we clearly noticed this detail—was a mustache trimmed in the Hitler style. In fact, the being before us positively had the head of the former Nazi dictator. He looked at us furiously and his mouth gave us the impression of spewing admonitions that we could not hear, muffled as they were by the thickness of the glass, or plastic material, of the porthole.
Suddenly the human shape turned in the direction of the flying egg and walked away in long strides.
HE HAD TWO FACES
But let us continue to listen to the witnesses of this extraordinary scene:
"Then," Messrs. Frédéric Veldemant and Poletto told us, "we felt our hair stand on end, for we realized that the human shape which was turning its back on us was walking away smiling. The face it presented to us was marked by a grimace full of joviality and amiability. Yet, as we knew that on the side toward which it was advancing—that is to say, toward the flying egg—its features were almost contorted with fury, we had to admit that the human shape resembling Hitler had two faces. One facing the front porthole, the other facing the rear porthole... The 'shape,' like Janus, had two faces."
