(Au rédacteur-en-chef).
Monsieur, -- La déclaration dans un numéro récent du Otago Daily Times selon laquelle un aéronef est passé
au-dessus de Dunedin un soir dernièrement, rappelera la fièvre d'excitation qui fut suscitée il y a quelques années
n1NDT: 1909 par l'apparition prétendue d'un mystérieux visiteur aérien au voisinage de Kelso et de Tapanui, et étant résident du Southland à l'époque,
les détails sont encore frais dans ma mémoire. Au début je pourrais dire que Kelso comme Tapanui sont dans le district
de prohibition de Clutha, de sorte qu'il est impossible que les résidents de cette localité puissent être accusés de
"voir des choses". La déclaration selon laquelle un aéronef avait été vu près de Kelso atteint normalement Dunedin, et
le Otago Daily Times dépêcha rapidement un journaliste à la commune du pays pour obtenir des renseignements
de première main. Un certain nombre d'écoliers, qui prétendirent avoir vu l'aéronef en plein jour, furent dûment
interrogés, et furent incité à faire des croquis grossiers des mystérieux visiteurs, et ceux-ci firent logiquement
leur apparition à l'impression, à côté de colonnes d'interviews et déclarations de résidents de la localité. Une
vieille dame déclara qu'elle avait été réveillée soudainement une nuit par un fort bruit de whirring
qui
semblait venir du ciel, tandis qu'un autre dit que dit ces bruits mystérieux de nuit faisaient galoper de manière
folle les chevaux d'un paddock adjacent, et going out to see what was the matter, saw a dark object in the sky,
carrying a light at either end, and traveling at a tremendous speed towards the mountains. When yet another Kelsoite
rushed into the township with the statement that he had found an empty petrol tin and a spanner, it was taken as proof
positive that the aircraft was no myth but a matter of substance, and the many readers of the daily press were regaled
with the statement that the airship was the invention of some engineer who was experimenting in aerial navigation, and
certainly much in advance of anything then known in the aviation world. The aircraft then appears to have made a
general tour of Southland, for at Waikaka (near Gore) some dredge hands declared that it passed so close one night
that they could hear the voices of the occupants speaking a "strange foreign language." At Invercargill a
policeman in a state of excitement told one of the local papers that he distinctly saw the lights of the airship
passing to the westward of the town. He was positive because he took a lamp post and the aerial visitor in a line,
closed one eye, and with the other saw the stranger disappear into the night. The ship was then alleged to have been
seen on several occasions in the vicinity of the Longwood range, one gentleman, who said he saw it from his house one
afternoon, sending what he purported to be a full description of the aircraft to one of the Invercargill papers. At
Colac Bay the local storekeeper also rushed into print with a statement that the ship passed quite low over the
township one night and made out to sea, and some blue lights being seen out in Foveaux Straits a few minutes
afterwards, the storekeeper gave it out through the press that these lights were signals from a foreign warship which
was acting in concert with the airship. Some time afterwards the aerial visitor was supposed to have been seen near
the Nuggets light house, going in the direction of the sea. The knowing ones then declared that the airship landed on
the deck of a foreign cruiser far out at sea, "which showed that some of the Continental nations were far ahead of us
in the science of aviation." It is quite evident from the foregoing that the Southerners have powerful
imaginations, and although prohibition has a good grip on that end of the country, they can see things in the air that
must turn our sober-going West Coasters green with envy. – I am, etc.,
EX-SOUTHLANDER.
Reefton, January 16th., 1913.