Xinjiang and the Expansion of Chinese Communist Power: Kashgar in the Early Twentieth Century

Other studies have described the policies of Yang Zengxin, Jin Shuren, and Sheng Shicai, the three autocratic rulers during the three decades from 1911 on, but Dillon presents additional notes based upon the 12 volumes of the Kashi wenshi ziliao (Cultural and Historical Materials on Kashgar City) and other sources issued by the present Chinese government. Dillon praises Mao Zemin for initiating reforms that "were modern and rational, and were designed to eliminate corruption and the worst excesses of exploitation" (104) and writes that Mao "refused to stay away from work when he was ill and often had to be sent home by his colleagues" (122).