Henry Reuterdahl - Controversial Article

Controversial Article

As a civilian, he was both enamored by and critical of the Navy. In January 1908, an article of his was published in McClure's that bluntly criticized the design of the Navy's battleships and blamed the errors on naval bureaucracy, whose "nature compels it to perpetuate mistakes". This was essentially a summary of his close friend William Sims's opinions, who had hoped to create enough of a controversy to force reforms in the Navy, namely the end of bureaucratic control over battleship technology and the establishment of promotion system based on ability. The article had a major impact, causing much consternation among not only the military, but in a large number of newspapers across the country as well. This was published after the Great White Fleet had already departed and when Reuterdahl left the fleet at Callao, Peru because of a serious illness in his family, it was falsely reported he was expelled from the journey. The article itself did eventually accomplish Sims's goals. In February 1908, the United States Senate ordered an investigation into the problems brought to light in the article. Five years later, after much effort spearheaded by Sims and Stephen B. Luce, Congress authorized a reorganization of the Department of the Navy.