“If Japan and America Fight” (1921)

By looking at the American army, one will come to the conclusion that, in point of discipline and skill in the art of war, the Americans are the worst of all nationalities. Referring to the American forces who participated in the recent war [Russo-Japanese War], the eye-witnesses tell us that the Americans have not made much progress for improvement [since the U.S. Civil War]. Moreover, the method of command adopted by the American officers is infantile compared with that of the Japanese army. I have no hesitation in saying that even if the American army were superior in number to our army, we need not be afraid of America so very much. Only, in reference to the navy, as naval warfare is largely conducted by machines, the situation may be somewhat different from that of the army. But machines are handled by men, so that there will not be much difference when one considers the real value of the Americans in actual battles.

Source: If Japan and America Fight, Kojiro Sato, Lt. Gen., Japanese Army, transl. Jihei Hashiguchi, Meguro Bunten, Tokyo, 1921.