Rear-Admiral Elliot had now been associated with Captain Elliot in his diplomatic functions, and they were nominated Joint-Plenipotentiaries for settling the matters in dispute with the Emperor. That object appeared little likely to be attained by wasting time in negotiations with irresponsible and overbearing public officers at Canton; it was, therefore, wisely resolved to take advantage of the best season of the year while it still lasted, and to proceed northward with the bulk of the force, in order to bring the emperor and his ministers to their senses, by exciting alarm as near as possible to the imperial capital. The Peiho river, therefore, which commands one of the great channels of intercourse with the metropolis, and is connected with the Grand Canal, through which all the wealth of China flows to Pekin, was now avowedly the chief point to which the expedition was to be directed. This movement was by no means a mere demonstration for the purpose of giving éclat to the conduct of the negotiations, but was in reality a _hostile_ operation; at all events, it became so as it proceeded, and the results of it may, in reality, be called the First Campaign in China. It was commonly called the first "China Expedition;" but the appellation was afterwards changed to the "Eastern Expeditionary force," which was also applied to the second expedition, as will be afterwards seen. A small force being left at the Bogue to maintain the blockade, the bulk of the expedition, together with the two plenipotentiaries, sailed to the northward at the end of June; part of the force above mentioned did not arrive until after the rest had sailed, but it soon followed the rest. The first encounter with the Chinese took place at Amoy, in the beginning of July, 1840. The Blonde, forty-four, Captain Bourchier, was sent into the harbour of Amoy, to endeavour to hand over a letter from the English naval commander-in-chief, addressed to the "Admiral of the Chinese nation." This high officer was not there, and the local mandarins refused to receive it, and fired upon a boat which was sent to the beach bearing a flag of truce at the bow, and conveying Mr. Thom, as interpreter, for the purpose of delivering the letter to the mandarins, for transmission to the Chinese admiral. The officers and crew of the boat had a narrow escape, for, besides being received with every possible indignity, the boat was fired at and _struck_, while preparations were evidently being made for an attack upon the frigate itself. Indeed, nothing could possibly be more hostile and insulting than the conduct of the Chinese officers, who met Mr. Thom at the landing-place. They shewed some inclination even to seize the boat in which he came, and declared they neither feared him nor the ship either.