One more book (1) about abductions has appeared, but this time with a significant difference: the author is a distinguished Harvard psychiatrist and has the background and credentials that previous dilettantes (2,3) lacked. Thus, one would expect a more precise and scientific presentation of a controversial issue, establishing a solid platform from which a rational treatment of the subject matter could be launched.
The main claim to fame of Mattoon, a central Illinois town of about 16,000 souls, is the alleged activity almost fifty years ago of a prankster never apprehended or identified. During a short period at the end of the summer of 1944, more precisely from 31 August to 12 September, this individual, and perhaps some copycats, terrified young women by releasing some kind of gas in their rooms, gas that was never identified, but that gained him the name of the Phantom Gasser of Mattoon.
Willy Smith writes:
In the last few years the UFO literature has been permeated by papers (1,2,3) under the signature of A. H. Lawson predicating the analogies, if not the identity, of real abductions with experimental abductions created by the author under laboratory conditions. Although some ufologists, like Druffel, and Rogo, have pointed out (4) the lack of validity of Lawson’s research for numerous and elementary reasons, his claims have considerable impact on the lay public, as some of his contributions have appeared in popular publications.