Can you compare and contrast the economic and military advantages of both the North and the South on the eve of the Civil War?

I would suggest that if there is a textbook or a set of
instructor notes that guides your assessment on such a topic, you should refer to these
before anything else.  In terms of what you will find here, I imagine that there will be
different opinions offered.  In my mind, I would say that one can easily compare and
contrast both sides in terms of economic and military advantages at the outset of the
Civil War.  From a military standpoint, the North enjoyed more population.  With an
advantage in population, it was able to endure more losses and replenish the human cost
quicker than the South.  I think that this ended up playing a major role in the North's
strategy which was to hope for a longer and more protracted war.  The North also enjoyed
greater industry and a stronger base of economics, which allowed them to be able to
withstand early losses and, again, play for time.  The South had a couple of challenges
at the outset of the war. Seeing that they were the ones who seceded from the Union, the
Southern government had to establish a foundation for a real government while fighting a
real war simultaneously.  This was too great of a challenge for President Davis or
anyone through which to navigate. The South believed that they enjoyed a military
advantage in that they understood their own territories better than Northern soldiers as
well as the fact that they boasted supreme military minds that were seen as critical to
a tactical victory.  The belief was that this war was going to be a short one, as the
South believed the North would be overwhelmed with their own tactical supremacy and the
historical tradition of war fighting that had been embedded in the South as part of its
culture.  The reality was that both of these were mistaken premises.  The North had the
cache to extend out the war, something that the agricultural South sorely lacked.
 Adding to this the command of the Northern navy which blockaded all Southern ports and
reduced the chance of foreign intervention and support, this ended up playing a large
role in the decisive nature of the war, as a snake choking its prey over
time.