Final answer:
The First Contraband Act declared that fugitive slaves were not to be returned to their owners, but were to be considered 'contraband of war' and allowed to live in 'contraband camps' and work for the Union cause.
Step-by-step explanation:
In August 1861, the First Contraband Act was passed by Congress, declaring that fugitive slaves who escaped to Union lines were not to be returned to their owners. This act affirmed General Benjamin F. Butler's policy of considering runaway slaves as 'contraband of war', claiming that he had the right to seize them as enemy property. While the act did not grant them full freedom, it allowed them to live in 'contraband camps' and work for the Union cause, providing a potential path to freedom.