he use of machinery or any other tool to aid in their progress. Therefore, theSlaves would be considered contraband just as any other toolwould be(2). Shortly after this precedent was set The LincolnAdministration passed The Confiscation Act which stated that allBlacks encountered in confederate territory were to be taken in andused at the Commanders descretion(1). This proved to be a greathelp to the Union Army while a huge blow to the Confederates.The Union was gaining manpower in direct proportion to theConfederates loosing it. This alone played a huge factor in thesuccess of the Union Armies. Eventually the confiscation of southern slaves began topresent a problem for the Union. The amount of Blacks fleeing from the Confederate side began to overwhelm the Union Armies.There were so many Blacks fleeing from the Confederate side thatUnion Armies soon had more people than they knew what to dowith. The Union Armies had to find a place for these people, soconsequently a decision had to be made. Many of the men andmost all of the women and children were put to use on desertedConfederate plantations. Of coarse there was always a threat ofConfederate rebels attacking these once owned plantations andretrieving their slaves, so the Union allocated soldiers to protectthese plantations. This proved to become a real asset for TheUnion. Not only where they commandeering new land andmoving further into Confederate territory, The Union utilized thisrich land and labor to supply it's armies with foodstuffs and otherresources.(3) As the use of Blacks became more commonplace in theUnion Armies their position began to evolve. Many Generalsprematurely began to use the Black Man as a soldier. Withoutconsent from Washington these Generals armed the Black Man andput them into a soldiers position. This action was not supported byLincoln and in fact looked down upon. However, this began tohappen throughout many of the Union Armie...
