Question

The cotton gin ________.

• A. was a curse to the planters
  
• B. planted cotton seeds faster
• C. produced cotton cloth faster
• D. allowed cotton to be grown profitably further North
• E. allowed cotton to be grown profitably further West

Answer 1

The correct option is E allowed cotton to be grown profitably further West

The cotton gin allowed cotton to be grown profitably further West. The cotton gin separated the seeds from the cotton fiber by forcing the fiber through a series of comb like teeth. The cotton that grew near the coast was characterized by long-fiber or long-staple cotton, from which the seeds came out more easily. The cotton that could be grown further inland was short staple and was much more difficult to de-seed. The cotton gin enabled short staple cotton to be grown profitably in the Black Belt, further West.