The Eastern Kilkennies – may the knot hold
Subject(s): Cats, China, China--Manchuria, Japan, Neutrality, Russia, Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), Sin
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Two cats, one labeled “Japan” attacking the other labeled “Russia,” have their tails tied to a rope labeled “Manchuria” with a ribbon labeled “Neutrality.”
Comments and Context
“Kilkenny cats” are parties whose disagreements are so strong that they kill and devour each other, with only their tails remaining on the ground. The term is derived from a legend about the querulous residents of County Kilkenny in Ireland.
Through centuries, Manchuria (today formally named by its Chinese governing parent “Three Northwest Provinces,” and sometime called by its Japanese name Manchukuo) was a geographical target of voracious Russia and Japan, and variously populated and sometimes ruled by a dozen tribes and ethnic groups, including the Han. Blessed with minerals, fertile land, and other natural resources, Manchuria both prospered and suffered because of its geography; with land to exploit and ports on the sea, it bordered Russia, China, Mongolia, and Korea; with the Japanese islands almost encircling its shoreline like a crescent in the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan. Port Arthur, where Russia maintained a naval base, was in Manchuria; the Russian city of Vladivostok is on the latitude of Manchuria’s geographic center. Sakhalin Island was traditional Manchurian territory long in dispute between Russia and Japan, and a cause of the Russo-Japanese War (the commencement of which specifically inspired Pughe’s cartoon); Soviet claims after World War II; and even board games.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1904-03-16
Creator(s)
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909
Period
U.S. President – 1st Term (September 1901-February 1905)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Page Count
1
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
The Eastern Kilkennies – may the knot hold. [March 16, 1904]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277751. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909. The Eastern Kilkennies – may the knot hold. [16 Mar. 1904]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 12, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277751.
APA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909., [1904, March 16]. The Eastern Kilkennies – may the knot hold.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277751.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 12, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
APA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
