During the War when the master were run off of the plantations by the Union Army and the slaves became free that 'Next Meal' became a big problem for the Contriband also. And we see what happened when emancipation was so freely given with no thought to the consequences. I have seen some reports that the death rate in the Contriband camps under Union Army control, especially along the Mississippi River, was higher per capita than the Union Prisoners death rate in Andersonville. But because these camps were controlled by the Union army nothing is every said about those conditions and deaths.