Question #4ff11
1 Answer
The economic basis of the south was large plantations that required manual labor the economic basis of north was manufacturing.
Explanation:
The economic basis of the south required large amounts of manual labor. The hot climate made working in the fields difficult for white europeans. Indentured servants, tended to run away, before their seven years were accomplished. Also plantation owners were expected to out fit their indentured servants at the end of seven years. (expensive). The Native Americans refused to work on the fields Black skinned Africans were the perfect solution. The hot climate was something that they were well adapted to. The skin color made running away difficult. Slaves were relatively cheap and could be kept for life.
The invention of the cotton gin made growing cotton possible through out the southern states, This created a demand for more labor, hence more slaves.
The Northern colonies climate and soil made large farms impractical. A family could raise the crops by themselves or perhaps with a single servant. The small fast rivers made manufacturing the main source of income in the north. The Puritan, Quaker, Congreational, religions of the northern colonies were opposed to slavery. Laws were passed outlawing slavery in the north. These same religious forces would cause slavery to be outlawed in England.
The economic , social, and political structures of the agricultural south made slavery, acceptable and profitable. The economic social and political structures of the manufacturing north, made slavery unacceptable and not profitable.
