the back panel a depiction in relief of a Boer War era British infantryman, the legend below reading 'THE MAN IN KHAKI'; complete, overpainted in black gloss with some loss to paint,

Although Khaki uniforms were used by the British Army in the Sudan in the 1880s, and in Abyssinia before, it was the use of ‘khaki drill’ in the Second Boer War (1899-1902) that had an impact on public perceptions and the wider culture.  British soldiers were called ‘Khakis’ and the general election of 1900 was referred to as the ‘khaki election’, a term that still describes a national election that is held during or immediately after a war, the result of which is largely determined by public opinion on the prosecution and outcome of hostilities.  Lord Salisbury and the Conservatives were returned to office in 1900 amid the belief that the still ongoing war had already been won.  This relatively simple stick stand is an interesting remnant from late Imperial Britain- a document of the jingoistic sentiments of the era.