[Humorous pictures showing Chinese military tactics]

This multi-panel satirical print presents a series of vignettes mocking the perceived tactical inadequacy of Qing dynasty military forces during the First Sino-Japanese War. Kiyochika depicts Chinese soldiers employing absurd or outdated strategies — possible references to traditional weapons, disorganized formations, or superstitious practices — against the modern Japanese military. The humor depends on a contrast between Chinese archaism and Japanese modernity, a recurring theme in Meiji wartime visual culture. Each panel within the composition isolates a specific tactical failing, using spare pictorial space to heighten the comic impact of the figure or action depicted. The print's register is that of illustrated popular journalism, aimed at urban readers following the war's progress through the press. Kiyochika's line work in these caricatures is rapid and economical, built for legibility at small reproduction scale.