The introduction of the mechanical cotton gin induced a very sharp rise in demand for slave labor in the American South. Mechanizing the processing of cotton

The introduction of the mechanical cotton gin induced a very sharp rise in demand for slave labor in the American South. Mechanizing the processing of cotton created an increased demand for picking cotton, a process which had not yet been mechanized. Maybe if people had waited a few more years for the mechanization of cotton picking, this would have corrected itself. Or maybe not. Maybe further mechanization would have created other opportunities for the use of slave labor. My point is, "more industry = less slavery" is an oversimplification.