Answer:
"Most white northerners at the time [1860] viewed blacks as inferior. ...Only a few [white northerners] held strong opinions about slavery... A vocal minority of northerners were abolitionists. Some white northern bankers, mill owners, and merchants earned a lot of money on southern cotton and tobacco or by trading or transporting enslaved people. They were sympathetic to Southern plantation owners and did not want to abolish slavery."
14. How does the author of this secondary source interpret northern views of slavery in 1860?
a. Most northerners believed that slavery was morally wrong.
B. Most northerners were sympathetic to or supported slavery.
b. Most northerners wanted to abolish slavery.
d. Northerners wanted to expand the plantations in the North.
Step-by-step explanation:
Based on the information provided in the quote, the author of this secondary source interprets that in 1860, most white northerners viewed blacks as inferior, but only a few held strong opinions about slavery. A vocal minority of northerners were abolitionists, but some white northern bankers, mill owners, and merchants were sympathetic to Southern plantation owners and did not want to abolish slavery. Therefore, the author does not interpret that most northerners were sympathetic to or supported slavery (option B). Instead, the author's interpretation suggests that there were a variety of opinions on slavery among white northerners, ranging from those who were abolitionists to those who were sympathetic to Southern plantation owners. However, the author does not indicate that most northerners wanted to abolish slavery (option C) or that northerners wanted to expand the plantations in the North (option D).