The article below was published in the daily newspaper L'Ardennais, France, page 2, on November 20, 1954.
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On Thursday evening, on the second floor of the Charleville town hall, the lecture series of the Arthur Rimbaud Art Group began. An almost full room expressed its pleasure at seeing Mr. André George again, the brilliant speaker and rationalist scholar who had come in March 1952 to speak about atomic energy.
Moreover, the announced topic this time - "What should we think about flying saucers?" - greatly broadened the audience of the major lectures, arousing the curiosity of both "saucer believers", "non-believers", and agnostics alike.
Right from the start, the evening stood in stark contrast to Rimbaud the Seer, Rimbaud of interplanetary reveries and (to use the recent phrase of a great author) "a saucer believer before his time".
More skeptical than Saint Thomas, Mr. André George has personally never believed in nor seen "what man thinks he saw". He considers flying saucers and their procession of cigars, discs, fireballs, green rays, and Martians to be nothing more than a myth.
Of "all these fables that betray a laughable lack of imagination", the speaker prefers - and he says it plainly - the classicism of the brilliant La Fontaine, or the wonders of Andersen's tales, not to mention Cocteau.
With a smiling yet relentless rigor, Mr. André George willingly invokes his many illustrious friends from the scientific world and dismantles the arguments of saucer believers.
Of course, it's impossible for him to instantly reduce this myth to smoke. Even allowing for the large part played by suggestion and mental hallucination, one cannot simply dismiss the roughly ten thousand testimonies gathered since 1947 regarding "unidentified celestial objects." But even the most reputable testimonies do not faze Mr. André George, who, well-documented, has an answer for everything:
"What did man think he saw?" A whole range of optical illusions caused by various natural phenomena: mirage, temperature inversion, mock suns...
Furthermore, to those misled by a childlike critical sense, anything can become a saucer - jet plane contrails, fuel condensation, weather balloons, test rockets, or even a simple spider glistening in the sun!
Thus, for Mr. André George, there's no doubt: the flying saucer phenomenon is nothing more than an epidemic of illusions and hallucinations (to which one could also add hoaxes) and belongs in the realm of psychiatry...
"We live in a very curious age. Before mocking the obscurantism of the Middle Ages, we ought to conduct some self-criticism. Every era has its myth: after ghosts, revenants, and spy fever, now come the flying saucers. In 1914, any stranger was thought to be a spy; in 1940, a paratrooper; today, a Martian... A vast current of imagination fuels our love for the marvelous and the inexplicable. It starts as tall tales and ends in gunfire. That's why the widespread circulation of nonsense is not only an intellectual scandal but sooner or later, a public danger. The evening visitor, the passing stranger, the camper now runs the serious risk of being mistaken for a Martian target..."
Mr. André George does not hesitate to open the bulky dossier on flying saucers. He gives a historical overview of the topic. It was an American businessman, Arnold, who in 1947 invented the first "flying saucer": an excellent publicity name, and one which, translated into every language, impressed and captivated the masses...
If, on January 7, 1948 - again in the United States - squadron leader Mantell crashed after chasing a "saucer" up to 7,000 meters, it was simply because he ran out of oxygen; no Martian disintegrated him in midair... That is how the "flying saucers" - which don't exist - claimed their first victim.
Moreover, after two years of research and debate, the American inquiry commission concluded by rejecting the saucer hypothesis. A viewpoint shared, with sound reasoning, by the Harvard astrophysicist Manzell [sic, Menzel], and the French experts at O.N.E.R.A. (National Office for Aeronautical Research) and the C.E.V. (Flight Testing Center) at Brétigny... The "unidentified object" research centers in the U.S., Canada, and Britain continue investigations with no results... In truth, there have been very few credible reports from qualified individuals concerning the flying saucer phenomenon.
Except for Manzell's book, all the "saucer" books in circulation belong to the realm of pure fantasy - while paradoxically lacking in imagination.
Of course, there has been talk - not counting the Martian saucers - of terrestrial aircraft (if one may use the term). Remotely guided or experimental craft that defy the laws of mechanics, gravity, and aerodynamics. As if such craft (assuming they could ever be built) would recklessly fly in all skies! A strange idea for a "secret weapon"! Thus Lieutenant Plantier's theory fizzled out despite its clever reference to cosmic ray force fields. Of course, with enough equations, you can prove anything (especially to laypeople). But Mr. André George is firmly resolved not to fall for what he calls a "charming hoax".
Another blow, and the Michelin-man Martian, once a great interplanetary star and now even inspiring children's costumes, is deflated. The Martian is a hit, kissing young girls and frightening shepherd boys. But, like his earthly fans, he lacks imagination. His favorite outfit - robot or diving suit - makes him a very familiar kind of stranger. For a supposed representative of a civilization more advanced than ours, that's rather embarrassing.
In fact, why are Martians reportedly seen here and there aboard flying saucers? Mr. André George has a ready explanation: our pale astronauts of today are merely echoes of the already old "War of the Worlds" made famous by Wells. At least "The War of the Worlds" was a well-made science fiction novel, with genuine charm and mystery...
After debunking the Martian, Mr. André George turns to discrediting Mars itself: he doesn't hold back.
No oxygen, glacial climate; this celestial suburb is a major letdown. At best, some lichens might survive; but higher life forms? Let's be serious!
And beyond the red planet and its imaginary canals?
Should we believe in the plurality of inhabited worlds? Is there room for a civilization more advanced than ours? And even if there were - what are the chances of crossing interplanetary space?
Alas! Mr. André George's stellar archipelagos are hopelessly deserted; no Robinson Crusoe will likely ever set foot there...
Very honestly, the speaker admits that "we are surrounded by unknowns in science, and there are still many natural phenomena not yet understood." It's perfectly legitimate to take an interest in flying saucers: no subject is inherently scientific or anti-scientific - what matters is approaching any subject scientifically.
We must thank Mr. André George for never straying from this rule. His lecture was worthy of a Sorbonne lecture hall.
As strong and numerous as his arguments may be, were they all convincing? Have the "saucer believers" been pushed to their final retreat? We'll never know, as the session ended before the audience could ask questions. And it was only 10:20 p.m... A debate would have been fascinating - but admittedly, it might have gone on well into the night...
Pierre MILLY
