Question

what contributions did samuel slater and francis cabot lowell make to american manufacturing?

they invented machines that not only separated the cotton, but also sorted it according to grades and strengths.

they put up huge amounts of their own capital to hire as many people as possible to increase production.

they persuaded english investors to share their techniques and ideas to get the american textile industry going.

they built on practices they had seen in england to improve equipment and production techniques in the textile industry.

Explanation:

To determine the correct answer, we analyze each option:

• The first option describes a machine for cotton separation and sorting, but Samuel Slater and Francis Cabot Lowell were more about adapting English textile practices, not this specific machine invention.
• The second option about using their own capital to hire many people is not accurate to their contributions; they focused on textile manufacturing techniques and systems.
• The third option is incorrect as they did not persuade English investors to share techniques; Slater memorized English textile machine designs and Lowell improved on textile manufacturing systems, not by getting English investors to share.
• The fourth option is correct. Samuel Slater brought knowledge of English textile machinery (by memorizing designs) to America, and Francis Cabot Lowell built on English textile practices to develop the power loom and the factory system, improving equipment and production techniques in the American textile industry.

Answer:

D. They built on practices they had seen in England to improve equipment and production techniques in the textile industry. (Note: Assuming the options are labeled A, B, C, D in order. If the original options had different labels, adjust accordingly. Here, the fourth option is the correct one.)