The 1954 French flap:

BEWARE OF YOUR CONTEMPORARIES...

The "Martian" that a young man thought he saw on the road to Grasse was only a highway patrol officer

In a police investigation, one always asks: "Who benefits from the crime?" In the vast investigation that millions of people have undertaken regarding "flying saucers," it would be wise, at times, to ask the same question. For while many witnesses are sincere, and while it is possible to see strange things in the sky, and as we have recently learned, aircraft matching these descriptions are being studied, built, and even tested, it remains true that often the saucer is merely a lid—and the pot of roses is quickly uncovered...

Thus, ten days ago, Mr. André Narcy, 47, a road worker in Mertrud, arrived at work breathless: "I saw a flying saucer," he claimed, and went on to give many details: an orange-colored craft stopped in a field, a small being dressed in a fur-lined cloak. A beautiful vertical takeoff of the mysterious device.

Moreover, Mr. Narcy could point out the location. With two of his colleagues, Messrs. Riel and Henry, he went back. All three stated that, indeed, the dew had dried on a certain area, the grass had taken on "a slightly milky tint," and round "footprints" were visible, etc...

In short, when questioned again by the police, Mr. Narcy just confessed that he had made the whole story up to excuse his late arrival at work...

On the other hand, there are witnesses whose imaginations are too vivid and who could have a future in adventure novels—or even science fiction.

Example: a young man, last week, was riding a moped near Grasse. The weather was nice, nature still cheerful. Everything was going well. Suddenly, the hero of the story saw the branches of a thicket by the roadside part, and a strange being appeared: a dark helmet in place of a head, a skin that looked like leather, large glassy, bulging eyes...

"A Martian!" realized the cyclist, who, overwhelmed by emotion, nearly fell off. After swerving and stalling his engine, he sped off at full throttle to alert the authorities.

Two hundred meters down the road, the young man saw the living replica of his "Martian": a highway patrol officer who was waiting next to two motorcycles for his colleague who had gone to "return nature's excessive bounty"...

Imagine, if the witness hadn't seen the two motorcycles and the policeman, the Alpes-Maritimes would be counting one more "Martian"! Just goes to show how little it takes for a legend to be born...

But some hallucinations are more dangerous.

Mr. Maurice Ruant, a farmer in Sinceny, near Chauny (Aisne), almost became a victim of one.

On Friday evening, he was fixing his car in a field near his home, when two gunshots were fired in his direction. The pellets smashed against the body of the

Paul HUMBOURG.

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FLYING SAUCERS

...vehicle, not far from his head. Mr. Maurice Ruant filed a complaint, and the investigation that was immediately opened quickly identified the shooter as Mr. Ruant's neighbor, Mr. Faisan.

The latter told the police:

"I believed, seeing a silhouette moving in the light of two headlights, that I was witnessing a Martian repairing his flying saucer. I went to get my rifle and fired."

No need to specify that Mr. Faisan will be prosecuted, despite his good faith! Here's one man, in any case, who wouldn't be very hospitable to inhabitants from other planets. If the Martians find out, they may prefer to go to the Moon—in fact, they'd meet plenty of Earthlings who are already there...

In short, let's be careful. The well-equipped motorcyclist would do well to hang a sign around his neck proclaiming that he is indeed from this world, and night-time roadside repairs near inhabited areas are no longer advisable. Because, truth be told, it's not the Martians who are dangerous—but the neighbors. We already suspected it before the arrival of the “flying saucers.” Now, we are convinced of it!