◆ SpookStack

‘LYING saucers” are back in the news. From, New ‘York comes a report that Captain Jack JAdams, pilob of the Chicago nd Southern Airlines, radioed | that he and a co-pilot had crossed the path of a large fly- “saucer, with lighted fav and a_ peculiarly coloure blinking 600 m.p.h, over Arkansas. cable from Lisbon: Scores of flying saticers reported by coastguards of the ad other formations and ing west (iater bullets.” So the 1950 “ saucer season” seems to have opened early, | craft. came on June 25, 1947, | when a Mr. Dahl of Tacoma, ing machine, like a silver Lane jeutting capers over rotating Speculations =~ | The centre craft then began fg aren metallic rain. Mos‘ of e but one piece tances Mr b on ‘July 4, the first photo- “flying saucer” by a Seattle coast- ‘The snap revealed ‘ite oblong, set pete, lavy si ee plane—the “Flyin; | Pancake “faster than ‘eported over Br round a quarters. that iptions fitted its new ‘Force ed. light on duced an article in which he top and travelling at about claimed to have received a message, via a medium, that This was followed by a news there were people aboard the “ saucer: = They came from another ‘North Planet, and wished to try liv- Portugal coast flying in line ing on earth, In Britain “saucers” were yhton beach, and another was seen by 2 clereyman’s wife at Sandwich. Back in America President “First report of these strange ‘Truman compared the rumours — to the scare of over a hundred years ago, when word got Wasttagian noticed a circular around that there were men and hats living on the moon, The neatest “flying saucer” ‘quipping came from Mr, ab > head- “Some,” he said, “ attribute them to the British for export- ing too much whisky to the US., others that it is a Russian. is_ thrower training for the Olympic Games who does not know his own strength.” _ The first flying saucer fever ed down under sheer weight of explanation, but reports a Still came i ‘Spain suspected In May, 1948, a U. intelligence hat the “ dis In December, 1949, official body which had ‘b established in America to prolje the “saucers” was disbandell. It had been in operation two years, and had investigati 375 incidents. It said that the phenomen: was caused by : (a) misinter- pretation of various conyen-, tional objects; (b) a mild form” of mass hysteria; (c) hoaxes, And there, one might haye imagined, the story would have ended. But the qs: saucers" refused to” grounded. Ss Fellow travellers? The present phase of flying saucerisms reached its climax Mi we but not ae Denver, Colorado, a ported that a similar “ had come to grief ane ibe three little mei