Mr. SAULSBURY. Mr. President; the honorable Senfrom Ohio has placed now the justification of this act upon totally different grounds from any which hementioned in any former argument. He now goes back to the “higher law;" the law that as between 2 foreign nations every compact is broken b war; and he treats this case now as thoug Virginia was a foreign nation; the U.S. foreign to her; that there was an exist ing contract between them; that war broke out and was waged between them; and this Government being the conquering Government has a right to dispose of the soil of Virginia as she pleases. That is an abandonment of the position formerly taken when treating Virginia as a State of the Union, and the view now as serted in support of the position which he takes, that Virginia is not a State in the Union, and that none of the States which assumed to secede are today States of the Union, because if he admits them to be States in the Union, then they have all the right that every other State in the Union has in reference to the question of the eminent domain over their territory. But, sir, I apprehend that the doctrine that Virginia is not a State in the Union, and that the other States which assumed to secede are not States of the Union, although attempted to be inaugurated at the commencement of this session, has been totally abandoned. We have not heard for months upon this floor, although it was feebly whispered in the beginning of this session, that these southern States are not States in the Union. You cannot by possibility now say that they are not States in the Union, because you have passed your constitutional amendments and propose to submit them to those States as States in the Union; you appoint your revenue collectorsin those States as States in the Union; you levy your taxes upon them as Statesin the Union, and in every act where it was necessary to name them. you named them “the State of Virginia, ” “the State of SCarolina, ” “the State of Ala bama, ” dzc. There are 100s of acts upon your statute books since the commencement of this war making this clear recognition of those States as being States in the Union; and the honorable Senator cannot support his view that you have a right to dispose of any portion of the State of Virginia as you lease unless he oes for the doctrine that irginia is not a ‘tate in the Union. Mr. President, the doctrine of the honorable Senator would lead to this: ifyou have a right to take any portion of the State of Virginia and appropriate it to yourselves you have the right to take the whole of it. You have a right to wi e out State lines entirely, you have a right to tags the whole of SCarolina and every other southern State, blot out State lines, and call it. “ the territory of rebeldom, ” and hold it regardless of any ormer status. That is the on y ound you havc'got to assume that Virginia is not a State in the Union, and that you vs a right to wipe out State lines throughout all the southern territory and reduce them to one common territory, to be held subject to your absolute will, or the argument of the senator falls. The proposition opens up a field of argument which, ifI had time, would take hours to exhaust. A compact, says the learned Senator, is broken by a war between the parties to the compact; applying that principle as between fordgn nations to the States of this Union when a conflict arises between the States of the Union. Mr. President, I deny the application of any such principle, however applicable to the wars between foreign Powers, to a war between the different States of this Union. Ifyou have power to make war upon any State of this Union or any number 0 States, what gives you the power? In what principle has it its origin? n this and nothing else, that the States agreed, in the Constitution which they formed, to live together in a common Union upon certain terms and conditions, each pledging its faith to observe those terms and conditions. If one party fails in the due performance of that duty, and you get the power to make war upon that State, for what purpose is it? You declared it in the commencement of the war. such a doctrine as that new advanced was then scouted. You declared that the war was to reserve the Union with all the dignit and rights of the several States unimpaire; and when that object was accomplished the war ought to cease. The only pretense of right that on could have claimed for making war upon Virginia or any other southern State was on the assumption that they had yiolated their agreement and had failed to live with you upon the terms upon which they and you agreed upon. If on had the power to make war at all, it was (in the purpose of compelling those States to live up to their contract; and when on broke down their physical force, subdued their Military power, you accomplished your purpose, and you ad no right to alter or interpolate the contract when you had obtained a decree to compel a specifie performance, by military power, of the contract to live according to the terms and conditions of the Constitution. If any man basis the right. of this Government to wa e war against the southern States upon any 0510f principle than this, he placed it upon a ground wholly untenable, andhn the prosecution of a war for any other purpose would become an ag ressor himself and a dissolver of the Federal nion. Why, sir, if the principle for which the Senator contends be true, if you do not admit Virginia to be a State, you would have a right to say that she should be represented by one senator on this floor instead of two, because according to his theory war discharges all obligations, puts an end to all contracts and compacts, and it would be a mere matter of grace and favor on the part of the Congress of the U.S. to admit Virginia and the other southern States here with one Senator on this floor. And yet the Constitution of the U.S. says each State shall have 2 Senators. hi. President, the argument of the Senator, in my judgment, rests upon a wholly wrongful perception of the true nature, theory, and character of our Federal system. He thinks that because the State of Virginia attempted to secede, therefore she was out of the nion, and you have absolute control over her territory and people; that you may reduce the whole southern States into one territory, hold them subject to your absolute willand pleasure; thatyou may lake any portion of their soil and annexit to this District, or you may annexit to any State in the Union. According to his theory, you may annexVirginia to Massachusetts; you may do what you please with it. But. sir I will not argue against a proposition which the general public sentiment and opinion of the whole country now condemns. e doctrine of “dead States” no longer exists in the fancy of the most imaginary. The principle which has been started now for the 1st time in reference to this question, that war puts an end to all compacts, has no possible application to a war between the States of this uion, the war being waged for the preservation of the Union under and in accordance with the Constitution of the country. I will not detain the Senate any longer.