<P> During April, regular Army and militiamen patrolled around and into the reservation but made little contact with the Seminoles . One six - hour battle was fought near Bowlegs Town in April, with four regulars killed and three wounded before the Seminoles withdrew . The Seminoles continued to carry out small raids around the state . On May 14, 1856, fifteen Seminoles attacked the farm house of Captain Robert Bradley north of Tampa, killing two of his young children . One Seminole was killed by Bradley . Bradley may have been targeted because he had killed Tiger Tail's brother during the Second Seminole War . On May 17, Seminoles attacked a wagon train in central Florida, killing three men . Mail and stagecoach service in and out of Tampa was suspended until the military could provide protection . </P> <P> On June 14, 1856, Seminoles attacked a farm two miles (3.2 km) from Fort Meade . All of the household made it safely into the house, and they were able to hold the Seminoles at bay . The gunfire was heard at Fort Meade, and seven mounted militiamen responded . Three of the militiamen were killed and two others wounded . More militiamen pursued the Seminoles but had to retreat when a sudden rain wet their powder . On June 16, twenty militiamen from Fort Fraser surprised a group of Seminoles along the Peace River, killing some of the Seminoles . The militiamen withdrew after losing two dead and three wounded . They claimed to have killed as many as twenty Seminoles, but the Indians admitted to only four dead and two wounded . However, one of the dead was Ocsen Tustenuggee, who seems to have been the only chief who would actively lead attacks against settlements . </P> <P> The citizens of Florida were becoming disenchanted with the militia . There were complaints that the militiamen would pretend to patrol for a day or two and then go home to work their fields, and that they were given to idleness, drunkenness, and thievery . The officers were reported to be unwilling to submit required paperwork . Most importantly, the militia had failed to prevent attacks against settlers . </P> <P> In September 1856, Brigadier General William S. Harney returned to Florida as commander of the federal troops . Remembering the lessons he had learned in the Second Seminole War, he set up a system of forts in a line across Florida, and patrols moved deep into Seminole territory . He planned to confine the Seminoles to the Big Cypress Swamp and the Everglades, because he believed they would be unable to live there during the wet season . He anticipated being able to catch the Indians when they left their flooded sanctuaries seeking dry land for raising their crops . Part of Harney's plan involved using boats to reach islands and other dry spots in the swamps . He first made one more attempt to negotiate with the Seminoles but was unable to make contact with them . In early January 1857, he ordered his troops to actively pursue the Indians . Harney's plan, however, had shown few results by the time he and the Fifth Infantry were transferred to Kansas to aid in the uprisings there in April . </P>

Do you think adams should have pushed for war why or why not