The article below was published in the daily newspaper France Soir, Paris, France, on October 19, 1954.
|
An investigation by André FONTAIN and Jacques BERGEAL
Flying saucers have become the topic of the day. Increasingly numerous testimonies are being produced by people who, in good faith, claim to have observed mysterious objects. An unexplained reality or collective fiction, flying saucers are the unknown at the end of this year 1954.
"France-soir" opens the file. We do not claim to provide a definite answer to the question. We intend to tell you how these mysterious objects appeared in our world, how, from the astonishment of an American pilot more than seven years ago, the number of sightings has increased month by month to the tidal wave that now seems to engulf our country. In the U.S.A., out of 375 officially studied cases, 34 remain unexplained. Starting in 1952, flying saucers began appearing in European skies, first in England, then in the Nordic countries, and finally in France.
After the long journey through the countries where the flying saucer flourishes, we will now step aside in favor of our correspondents.
What we have recounted so far was a narrative of verified, so to speak, classic episodes.
The man in the street, meanwhile, remains somewhat skeptical despite the precision of his recollection, and more often than not, even if he signs with his name and address, he asks us not to publish them, "so that his neighbors and friends don't mock him." A legitimate scruple, although hardly compatible with scientific rigor. In any case, we give the floor to our readers, leaving others the full freedom to judge...
First, to the prince of mystery who signs XXXX "so as not to be outdone."
"The saucers of Kenneth Arnold and Mantell (see our previous articles) are of completely different origins: the former are truly new flying machines, the latter are Russian extrapolations, jet aircraft from the Krigsmarin of 1943."
Here is a brief and simple testimony from Mrs. P... on Guéranger Street in Paris:
"I report that on Tuesday evening, October 12, around 10:45 p.m., we saw, my brother Roger C... and I, from the window of our home, a bright object like a star crossing the sky, leaving behind a long trail of white smoke... I assure you of the sincerity of my account."
A story now, which, by the author's own admission, owes its truth to good wine. Mr. Regis L..., Dieppe:
On the night from Sunday to Monday, around 12:30 a.m., I was seeing out my last customer, when he called me: "Regis, come see, there's a saucer outside." I went out and saw only the full moon. I went back into the bar, telling the customer to go to bed, he'd had enough to drink. Guided by I don't know what thought, I checked the calendar for the moon phase. And lo! it wasn't a full moon but a quarter moon. I immediately went back out and saw my full moon disappearing towards the northeast."
From Mrs. Andrée F.K., employee of the E. de F. in Ottmarsheim (Haut-Rhin):
A craftsman from Rixheim, the other night, saw a luminous object seemingly floating above the Feldberg in the Black Forest. He took his binoculars and observed that the object, clearly larger than a star to the naked eye, had the shape of a cigar and was in a vertical position. The surface appeared to be divided into square portholes, each lit with a different and very bright color. The object remained visible from midnight to 2 a.m."
We must stop here, because we also want to give a voice to those who "have seen them."
Three Alsatians from Saverne, united in their account, describe an "object" seen in the Vosges, then:
"Four beings emerged from the openings. They were no more than one meter tall, and disappeared into the ferns as soon as they touched the ground. They appeared to be cylindrical in shape. I could not distinguish a head, neck, or limbs."
The author had the "crazy idea of capturing one of the occupants" but did not succeed...
On the other hand, Mr. Lucien R..., in Paris (16th arrondissement), saw — in the Bois de Boulogne, no less — "three mysterious and miniature beings" who danced around him in a scene reminiscent of Shakespearean interludes. The leader of these "1954 korrigans," Mr. Lucien R... believes, seemed to be female, as it had six round bulges on its abdomen, arranged in pairs, like women's breasts"...
We don't have the heart to go on, so we will now present some of the most striking hypotheses proposed by our correspondents:
Mr. Henri H..., E.S.E. engineer, rue de Rennes:
"There are currently a huge number of high-voltage lines that crisscross nearly all countries in the world.
"These lines leak into the atmosphere. A growing number of electrons escape each second and disperse into space.
"It is conceivable that these electrons gather at certain points to form luminous masses which are called saucers, cigars, or flying mushrooms.
"These electric masses contain traces of gas, giving the object a luminosity that varies in color depending on the gas involved..."
Hardly more reassuring is the hypothesis of Mr. E. G..., rue Armand-Gauthier, Paris (18th):
"If these objects come from other planets, then there must be beings more advanced than humans in terms of propulsion; and the only way to know would be to capture one. One could also try to destroy one of these objects with cannons or machine guns. But making enemies of such beings might lead them to fight us... with more advanced means, including the infamous paralyzing ray."
The Bible is also cited by Mr. Samson A..., from Paris:
"I have read, in the most profound writings of the Bible, that one day small beings will descend from the sky, of large build, shaped like a barrel, with hairy faces. These beings once formed a tribe that vanished by a miracle of God. They only speak Hebrew and are called Gorous-Marou. To make contact with them, just shout "Shalom! Shalom," which means "Peace" in Hebrew, or "Hello!" If a Martian responds with the same word, then there is no doubt our Martians are Gorous-Marou."
Finally, let's be good sports and end this anthology with a brief word from Mr. R. Guillet, 144 rue Marcade, Paris (18th):
"Better offer a five million franc reward to anyone who brings back a Martian, dead or alive, and you'll keep your money!"
After this stern admonishment from a skeptical layman, we will now give the floor to the experts.
NEXT ARTICLE:
The opinion of astronomers
N.B. -- In one of our recent articles, we mentioned the testimony of Colonel Chiles, millionaire of the air. A clear error led us to print: "he totals a million hours of flight." It is obviously a million kilometers that should have been written.
ROME, October 18 (dispatch from "France-soir"). -- Mr. Desmond Leslie, American writer, who has devoted years to the study of flying saucers, has just shared the latest results of his research on Italian television.
The flying cigars, he notably stated, are a kind of aircraft carrier, 300 meters long. They contain numerous flying saucers. These exit from the underside of the cigar. They transport passengers and come from different planets. The passengers have already made contact with humans several times. So far, nearly a hundred encounters have been recorded. Able to pick up our radio broadcasts, the inhabitants of other planets manage to understand our languages and even use them themselves.
Thus, planetary visitors landing in England showed they understood English, but it is likely that other space travelers could use other Earth languages.
The passengers of flying saucers, says Mr. Leslie, should inspire no fear in Earth's inhabitants. They come to visit us for three reasons:
1) Their attention was drawn by the explosions of atomic and H-bombs.
2) They know our planet is about to undergo significant changes. They want to help us, if they can.
3) They want to study our civilization.
(Copyright by "France-soir" and Scoop.)
