Final answer:
Northerners had different beliefs on the expansion of slavery, including the belief that it would collapse if expansion was denied and the belief that they could get along without slave-produced cotton. All the options are correct.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the debate on the expansion of slavery in the United States, northerners held different beliefs on the issue:
- Slavery would collapse if expansion was denied: Many northerners believed that if the expansion of slavery was restricted, it would eventually lead to the collapse of the institution.
- They could get along without slave-produced cotton: Some northerners believed that the North could survive and thrive without relying on cotton produced by enslaved people in the South.
- Slavery existed because of the moral depravity of southerners: A viewpoint held by some northerners was that the existence of slavery in the South was primarily due to the moral depravity of southerners.
- Slavery should be allowed in states where a majority favored it: There were also northerners who believed that slavery should be allowed in states where a majority of the population supported it.