New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1908-11-25
PRESIDENT AND NAVY
FRANK TALK REPORIED'
rUe Must Haze Young Men, Says
Hr RoosepeIt to ReuterddhL

.-.s-ra hx Henry ReuterdahL
rsvzl critic directly quoting f1es41 - -,
= o,e Of his tavorite topics fhe nay = -,
80 I, .-7esrson's Magazine" for DeceuaoeT- NJ
L.-s.,.- - * entitled President Roosevelt
- -, Ns,,.s Renaissance" which ne introduces
- saving that Nr- Roosevelt Is me L. =
Ser uho has taken the 7aVy seI10oS.s'
sacla,ss M Reuterdahl. who know
- - - .he Presidents knowledge OF naval
- - ,,lv hs< he gresped the underlying
-. ,,u- according to Nj ReUterdshl, he has
- -. 70 keep himself Informed as 70 &c
- ,e-rSc-.s-ly Eunnery. Re oeleves mat al
@--a-s should work exclusively Tor me good OF
=, -. and he said concerning the critic
- no pe-sis-entIy deplored past inenciency
= xroo-f7z- you may say that the President has
-, =asd thar he considers that Commander Sims
h.s done mere for target practice than any other
=, n tire United States. and that II IS chiefly
z,s u hin that shoot well as We DO. II -
Facilitating 70 think what poor shots We were dur
ing TIE Spanish war
- asked the President Ar. Reuterdah writes;
What reward IS there for nan OF sirns's won
5s-t-l ABILITY He has the respect OF the service
s-d that s. all
49, n or counrrv7 We do not recognize rhe
value Of preparedness Sims had uphill fight
and would have out Il was partly De-
cause his appeal vss brought 70 ny attention that
rs target practise scheme and his other reforms
Went through
To Nv question" continues NJ Reuterdahl
What shall do get younger men for com
r-snc zrades7 ne replied Anything. whatever you
Determination. selection anything We must
have -ounE r7en. We cannot have nervous man
N -he bridge OF : barteship. Such men should not
- trusted win human lives and millions Of dollars
worth Of fighting material VII give you an
Illustration Of what mean Enen SPEAK OF ne
work thai the young men 90. aIlo ms IL al III
sane u which I wish you 20 refer On a certain
TN on The Mzyhover NO torpeoo-ooa1 oes1r0gers
s-co-uusnjed Us We were Just C1sn discussing lHe
he 1-E-
s1vfsablity Of sending the neet 70 me raCli-
ns5 bee- tod nv the Navy Department thar u
- = s---,zssllA 70 send these small craft
s-ouud-zbsr the officers and men cou4o not sCaIu
tbs strain snd that Tire men WOULD oeseT- AHar
night had two IieutenanJs the men who com
handed these craft a. dinner with on board the
Narrower I asked them about It One OF them
sad s8ir. President. are dying 70 60 Our men
sell Us that foU--6f-hs OF them are going 10 jump
sntp-1hs- they are tired ot going from harbor 10
1ar5o-s but Il We could 90 on the cruise they WOULD
So -e-enl1st They told that their crafts would
- sbsolurely self-suPPord1g, and took them at
-heir word and sent out thu order the following
dz- Thev were right Never in the history OF the
-orld have torpedo craft made such long trip On
their ozu resources They have repaired their o7Fn
dz-zEes and rhey have done their work I
exactly expressed ny feelings in the letter that
7r-oce 70 Lieutenant Commander Cone, 70 whom not
enough credit can b4 given FOR having handled MS
Errle ressels 50 well
Concluding his article With E warn tribute to the
President and the work he has done 70 bring the
ray 70 = higher state Of efficiency, NJ. Reuter-
dz1I writes:
President Eooseveit's success n making the navy
s1cie1r g un-que- From tbs rrst ne gTasped me
essential fact LLsI rapid hitting spells victory and
Missing shots defeat There IS other case in
-1-lcz-v history where reform Of similar in
par1s1ce las been accomplished with such thor
c-EECess and speed in tine Of peace Such Te-
forms are almost always L1e result OF indignant
public opinion aroused by national disaster OF by
-ne6Cie1Cy revealed By actual Wa-- Nsrher the
P-e-Ch people u $50 the British before the
Eoe- nor the Russians before their var with
~ c-zT- fri n
mar armies IN al cases & The same story
= bureaucratic suppression Of peC1oLc critlcsI1s
ard thE consequent needless loss OF thousands OF
sid millions OF treasure The comparison
h<-Teen present extraordinary ski in shoot
tnE and our former almost total tneftcle1Cy IS
concrsivs evidence that our navy was not ready
fo-