The article underneath has appeared in the New York Times, USA, on March 11, 1950.
|
FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT
WASHINGTON, MARCH 10
A new crop of reports that "flying saucers" have been observed over several parts of the United States and Mexico has prompted the Defence Department to repeat an official statement issued on December after a long investigation of this matter, that the reports were the result of "misinterpretation of various conventional objects, a mild form of mass hysteria, or hoaxes."
The current crop of reports includes one that a "flying saucer" has crashed near Mexico City with a man 23 in. in height on board. A similar rumour was circulating at Denver, Colorado, the only difference being that at Denver, three little men were involved. To-day, scores of residents of Orangeburg, South Carolina - including six members of the staff of the local newspaper - are asserting that last night they had watched a "flying saucer" hover over the city for 15 minutes and then disappear leaving a vapour trail, while from California come reports that a bright disc was seen there flying at about 400 feet. All the witnesses in California say they were certain it was not an aircraft of known variety. It was studied through a telescope by several person, who maintain that the object observed was about 50 ft. in diameter.
After the previous statement has been repeated, a spokesman at the Department of Defence commented to-day that the Department was naturally concerned with the air defence of the United States, but so far American security had not seemed to be threatened. He was, however, careful to add that if "these saucers start landing, and little men with radar sticking out of their ears climb out, we shall have to do something about it."
