Rover incident

[5] The ship struck a coral reef called Qixingyan near Cape Eluanbi and drifted into the area of Kenting[6] in modern-day Hengchun, Pingtung County, Taiwan.

[10][11] Following the wreck of the United States ship and killing of the surviving crew by aborigines, the American Consul to Amoy Charles William Le Gendre quickly traveled to Fuzhou, arriving on 2 April 1867, to persuade the Viceroys of Fujian and Zhejiang to intervene and put pressure on the Chinese authorities in Taiwan to resolve the issue.

"[13] Le Gendre commissioned the United States steamer Ashuelot, under the command of Captain John C. Febiger, in order to visit the scene of the wreck and to try (unsuccessfully) to get foreign officials in Taiwanfu (Taiwan's capital), where he arrived on 18 April) to act.

After a subsequent failed punitive expedition carried out by Rear Admiral Henry H. Bell of the United States Navy, Le Gendre again returned to Taiwan—this time without any reference to his superiors.

"[21] Le Gendre quickly assumed de facto command of the mission from General Liu in the course of a long and difficult march into deep aboriginal lands in southern Taiwan (some of which required extensive road construction).

Then, with the aid of William A. Pickering and James Horn, Le Gendre negotiated a Memorandum of the Understanding with Tauketok [22] (南岬之盟) guaranteeing the safety of shipwrecked American and European sailors with Tok-a-Tok[23] (c. 1817–1874),[a][24] the chief of 18 Paiwan aboriginal tribes in the area when the Rover had gone ashore.

[25][26][27] Tanketok (Toketok), explained that a long time ago the white men came and almost exterminated the Koaluts tribe and their ancestors passed down their desire for revenge.

Le Gendre castigated China as a semi-civilized power for not fulfilling the obligation of the law of nations, which is to seize the territory of a "wild race" and to confer upon it the benefits of civilization.