Question

read the excerpt from president lincolns 1865 inaugural address, in which he speaks about the civil war. one - eighth of the whole population were colored slaves, not distributed generally over the union, but localized in the southern part of it. these slaves constituted a peculiar and powerful interest. all knew that this interest was somehow the cause of the war. to strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this interest was the object for which the insurgents would rend the union even by war, while the government claimed no right to do more than to restrict the territorial enlargement of it. which statement best summarizes the central idea in this excerpt? ○ before the civil war, most enslaved people were living in the southern part of the union. ○ the union fought in the civil war because they wanted to strengthen, perpetuate, and extend slavery ○ the civil war occurred because people in the south wanted to protect and spread the practice of slavery ○ before the civil war, the government did not try to stop slavery, but only tried to keep it from growing.

Explanation:

The excerpt states that enslaved people were concentrated in the South, this slave-based interest caused the war, Southern insurgents fought to strengthen/extend slavery, and the federal government only sought to restrict slavery's territorial spread. We eliminate incorrect options:

1. The first option only covers a minor detail, not the central war cause.
2. The second option reverses the sides: the Union did not fight to extend slavery.
3. The fourth option omits the key point of the South's role in starting the war over slavery expansion.

The third option captures the core claim that the war arose from the South's desire to protect and spread slavery.

Answer:

C. The Civil War occurred because people in the South wanted to protect and spread the practice of slavery