Arming the Dragon authored by Dolf L. Goldsmith is a study of Chinese Mauser rifles from the Warlord Era. Better known for his Collector Grade books on the Maxim, Vickers, and Browning machine guns, Mr. Goldsmith has a long interest in Chinese arms and wrote this monograph based on personal inspection of thousands of Chinese Mauser rifles. Specifically, he covers the Hanyang, Model 1907, Type 21, and Chiang Kai Shek patterns, as built by the Hanyang, Nanking, Kung Hsien, and Kwangtung Arsenals.

This work includes invaluable analysis of production and serial number totals and interpretation of receiver markings in addition to basic histories of the four types of rifle. These rifles formed the backbone of the Warlord armies of the 1920s and 1930s.