B. It would increase the standard of living. Countries with higher literacy rates have higher standards of living.
The increase in the trade of silver during the period between 1550 and 1800 is due to the fact that silver was started to be used as a standard currency for trade purposes. Even though it was not considered as "legal tender", as it would later be used for this purpose with the introduction "Bimetallism" in the 19th century, it was widely adopted as a tool for trade among the civilizations that existed at the time.
No, as much as they wanted to stay neutral, they had no choice. They had to pick a side to be on
