The last
Gansu Xinjiang Provincial Governor (甘肃新疆巡抚) of Qing
Yuan Dahua (袁大化) fled and handed over his resignation to
Yang Zengxin on May 18, 1912, because of the resistance and struggle of the people of all ethnic groups in the north and south of the
Tianshan Mountains, Yuan "cannot deal with the revolutionaries, hears the wind and loses gall" (穷于应付, 闻风丧胆), and finally had to "flee into the
Shanhai Pass", on the other hand, he did not want to work for the Republic of China. The Ili revolutionaries and the
Gelaohui were then suppressed by Yang. Yang appointed
Ma Fuxing as military commander of 2,000
Chinese Muslim troops, to crush Yang's rivals. President
Yuan Shikai recognized his rule, appointing him Provincial Governor of Xinjiang. The revolutionaries printed new multi-lingual media. ==Modern evaluation==