"Gloom Added to Enjoyment of Disk Craze": Spies and Whizzing Flying Disks and Courage in 1947

 The Brenham Banner Press of Brenham, Texas had the most detailed piece in papers of July 9, 1947 - the same day General Ramey was in Ft. Worth emptying the "saucer" from Roswell.  As if to distract attention or to pave the way for a heavy handed approach to the topic of flying disks another story (in banner headline size) reads "Old Story of Stolen Atomic Secrets Just Brought to Light". 

The story "Gloom Added to Enjoyment of Disc Craze" was subtitled "Death Penalty Due if Saucers are A-Bomb Test."  The article was datelined Houston, Tex, July 9 (UP) stating an assistant U.S. Attorney Joseh Cash, Houston, said a person "is subject to the death penalty or life imprisonment [line is marred in digital copy] -ject of the saucers turn out to be part of an atomic experiment.

"The penalty may be $25,000 fine and 50 years imprisonment if the information is divulged innocently. The heavier penalty will be applied if the information is given out with intent to harm the United States. The attorney says his warning is based on the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Atomic Energy Act of 1946."

This goes a long way to explaining why so many early military and FBI files use terms such as "interrogate" when talking to people who claimed they had seen a flying disk. They had no clue what they were, they were being seen all over the country, even by military pilots, and so their fears of Russian spies arises to color and direct their actions. 

In light of this level of intimidation, think how brave some of these early witnesses had to be to speak out - to be "interrogated" by FBI, military and then ridiculed after the fact.