第2章

Itishighlyexpedient,saysHatsell,fortheduepreservationoftheprivilegesoftheseparatebranchesofthelegislature,thatneithershouldencroachontheother,orinterfereinanymatterdependingbeforethem,soastopreclude,oreveninfluencethatfreedomofdebate,whichisessentialtoafreecouncil。Theyarethereforenottotakenoticeofanybillsorothermattersdepending,orofvotesthathavebeengiven,orofspeecheswhichhavebeenheld,bythemembersofeitheroftheotherbranchesofthelegislature,untilthesamehavebeencommunicatedtothemintheusualparliamentarymanner。2。Hats。252。4。Inst。15。Seld。

Jud。53。Thustheking\'stakingnoticeofthebillforsuppressingsoldiers,dependingbeforetheHouse,hisproposingaprovisionalclauseforabillbeforeitwaspresentedtohimbythetwoHouses;hisexpressingdispleasureagainstsomepersonsformattersmovedinParliamentduringthedebateandpreparationofabill,werebreachesofprivilege。2。Nalson,743。andin1783,December17,itwasdeclaredabreachoffundamentalprivileges,&;c。toreportanyopinionorpretendedopinionofthekingonanybillorproceedingdependingineitherHouseofParliament,withaviewtoinfluencethevotesofthemembers。2。Hats。251,6。SEC。IV。

ELECTIONS。THEtimes,places,andmannerofholdingelectionsforSenatorsandRepresentatives,shallbeprescribedineachstatebythelegislaturethereof;

buttheCongressmay,atanytime,bylaw,makeoraltersuchregulations,exceptastotheplacesofchusingSenators。ConstitutionI。4。

EachHouseshallbethejudgeoftheelections,returns,andqualificationsofitsownmembers。ConstitutionI。5。SEC。V。

QUALIFICATIONS。THESenateoftheUnitedStatesshallbecomposedoftwoSenatorsfromeachstate,chosenbythelegislaturethereof,forsixyears,andeachSenatorshallhaveonevote。

Immediatelyaftertheyshallbeassembledinconsequenceofthefirstelection,theyshallbedividedasequallyasmaybeintothreeclasses。

TheseatsoftheSenatorsofthe1stclassshallbevacatedattheendofthe2dyear;ofthe2dclassattheexpirationofthe4thyear;andofthe3dclassattheexpirationofthe6thyear;sothatonethirdmaybechoseneverysecondyear;andifvacancieshappenbyresignationorotherwise,duringtherecessofthelegislatureofanystate,theexecutivethereofmaymaketemporaryappointments,untilthenextmeetingofthelegislature,whichshallthenfillsuchvacancies。

NopersonshallbeaSenator,whoshallnothaveattainedtotheageofthirtyyears,andbeennineyearsacitizenoftheUnitedStates,andwhoshallnot,whenelected,beaninhabitantofthatstateforwhichheshallbechosen。ConstitutionI。3。

TheHouseofRepresentativesshallbecomposedofmemberschoseneverysecondyearbythepeopleoftheseveralstates;andtheelectorsineachstateshallhavethequalificationsrequisiteforelectorsofthemostnumerousbranchofthestatelegislature。

NopersonshallbeaRepresentativewhoshallnothaveattainedtotheageoftwenty-fiveyears,andbeensevenyearsacitizenoftheUnitedStates,andwhoshallnot,whenelected,beaninhabitantofthatstateinwhichheshallbechosen。

RepresentativesanddirecttaxesshallbeapportionedamongtheseveralstateswhichmaybeincludedwithinthisUnion,accordingtotheirrespectivenumbers,whichshallbedeterminedbyaddingtothewholenumberoffreepersons,includingthoseboundtoserviceforatermofyears,andincludingIndiansnottaxed,threefifthsofallotherpersons。

TheactualenumerationshallbemadewithinthreeyearsafterthefirstmeetingoftheCongressoftheUnitedStates,andwithineverysubsequenttermoftenyears,insuchmannerastheyshallbelawdirect。ThenumberofRepresentativesshallnotexceedoneforeverythirtythousand,buteachstateshallhaveatleastoneRepresentative。ConstitutionoftheUnitedStates=

Whenvacancieshappenintherepresentationfromanystate,theexecutiveauthoritythereofshallissuewritsofelectiontofillsuchvacancies。ConstitutionI。2。

NoSenatororRepresentativeshall,duringthetimeforwhichhewaselected,beappointedtoanycivilofficeundertheauthorityoftheUnitedStateswhichshallhavebeencreated,ortheemolumentswhereofshallhavebeenincreased,duringsuchtime;andnopersonholdinganyofficeundertheUnitedStates,shallbeamemberofeitherHouseduringhiscontinuanceinoffice。ConstitutionI。6。SEC。VI。

QUORUM。AMAJORITYofeachHouseshallconstituteaquorumtodobusiness;butasmallernumbermayadjournfromdaytoday,andmaybeauthorisedtocompeltheattendanceofabsentmembers,insuchmanner,andundersuchpenaltiesaseachHousemayprovide。Constitution1。5。

Ingeneral,thechairisnottobetakentillaquorumforbusinessispresent;unless,afterduewaiting,suchaquorumbedespairedof;whenthechairmaybetakenandtheHouseadjourned。Andwhenever,duringbusiness,itisobservedthataquorumisnotpresent,anymembermaycallfortheHousetobecounted,andbeingfounddeficient,businessissuspended。

2。Hats。125。126。

ThePresidenthavingtakenthechair,andaquorumbeingpresent,thejournaloftheprecedingdayshallberead,totheendthatanymistakemaybecorrectedthatshallhavebeenmadeintheentries。RulesofSenate1。SEC。VII。

CALLOFTHEHOUSE。ONacalloftheHouse,eachpersonrisesupasheiscalled,andanswereth。Theabsenteesarethenonlynoted,butnoexcusetobemadetilltheHousebefullycalledover。

Thentheabsenteesarecalledasecondtime,andifstillabsent,excusesaretobeheard。Ord。H。Com。92。

Theyrisethattheirpersonsmayberecognized;thevoice,insuchacrowd,beinganinsufficientverificationoftheirpresence。ButinsosmallabodyastheSenateoftheUnitedStates,thetroubleofrisingcannotbenecessary。

Ordersforcallsondifferentdaysmaysubsistatthesametime。2。Hats。72。SEC。VIII。

ABSENCE。NOmembershallabsenthimselffromtheserviceoftheSenate,withoutleaveoftheSenatefirstobtained。

AndincasealessnumberthanaquorumoftheSenateshallconvene,theyareherebyauthorisedtosendtheserjeantatarms,oranyotherpersonorpersonsbythemauthorised,foranyorallabsentmembers,asthemajorityofsuchmemberspresentshallagree,attheexpenseofsuchabsentmembersrespectively,unlesssuchexcusefornon-attendanceshallbemade,astheSenate,whenaquorumisconvened,shalljudgesufficient:andinthatcase,theexpenseshallbepaidoutofthecontingentfund。AndthisruleshallapplyaswelltothefirstconventionofSenate,atthelegaltimeofmeeting,astoeachdayofthesession,afterthehourisarrivedtowhichtheSenatestoodadjourned。Rule19。SEC。IX。

SPEAKER。THEVice-PresidentoftheUnitedStatesshallbePresidentoftheSenate,butshallhavenovote,unlesstheybeequallydivided。Constitution1。3。

TheHouseofRepresentativesshallchusetheirSpeakerandotherofficers。ConstitutionI。2。

Whenbutonepersonisproposed,andnoobjectionmade,ithasnotbeenusualinParliamenttoputanyquestiontotheHouse;butwithoutaquestion,themembersproposinghimconducthimtothechair。Butiftherebeobjection,oranotherproposed,aquestionisputbytheclerk。2。Hats。158。

Asarealsoquestionsofadjournment。6Grey。406。WheretheHousedebatedandexchangedmessagesandanswerswiththekingforaweek,withoutaSpeaker,tilltheywereprorogued。Theyhavedoneitdediemindiemforfourteendays。1。Chand。331。335。

IntheSenate,aPresidentprotemporeintheabsenceoftheVice-Presidentisproposed,andchosenbyballot。HisofficeisunderstoodtobedeterminedontheVice-President\'sappearingandtakingthechair,oratthemeetingoftheSenateafterthefirstrecess。

WheretheSpeakerhasbeenill,otherSpeakersprotemporehavebeenappointed。Instancesofthisare1。H。4。SirJohnCheyney,andsoSirWilliamSturton,andin15。H。6。SirJohnTyrrel,in1656,January27。1658,March9。1659,January13

SirJobCharltonill。Seymourchosen,Notmerelyprotem。1Chand。169。276,277。

1673,February18。

Seymourbeingill,SirRobt。Sawyerchosen,1678,April15。

Sawyerbeingill,Seymourchosen。

Thorpeinexecution,anewSpeakerchosen,3H。VI。3Grey11。andMarch14,1694,SirJohnTrevorchosen。Therehavebeennolaterinstances2Hats。161。4inst。8L。Parl。263。

ASpeakermayberemovedatthewilloftheHouseandaSpeakerprotemporeappointed。2Grey186。5Grey134。SEC。X。

ADDRESS。THEPresidentshallfromtimetotimegivetotheCongressinformationofthestateoftheUnion,andrecommendtotheirconsiderationsuchmeasuresasheshalljudgenecessaryandexpedient。ConstitutionII。3。

AjointaddressofbothHousesofParliamentisreadbytheSpeakeroftheHouseofLords。ItmaybeattendedbybothHousesinabody,orbyacommitteefromeachHouse,orbythetwoSpeakersonly。AnaddressoftheHouseofCommonsonly,maybepresentedbythewholeHouse,orbytheSpeaker,9Grey473。1Chandler,298,301。orbysuchparticularmembersasareofthePrivyCouncil。2Hats。278。SEC。XI。

COMMITTEES。STANDINGcommittees,asofprivilegesandelections,&;c。areusuallyappointedatthefirstmeeting,tocontinuethroughthesession。Thepersonfirstnamedisgenerallypermittedtoactaschairman。Butthisisamatterofcourtesy;everycommitteehavingarighttoelecttheirownchairman,whopresidesoverthem,putsquestions,andreportstheirproceedingstotheHouse。4inst。11,12,Scob。9。1Grey122。

Atthesecommitteesthemembersaretospeakstanding,andnotsitting:

thoughthereisreasontoconjectureitwasformerlyotherwise。D\'Ewes630。col。1。4。Parl。Hist。440。2Hats。77。

Theirproceedingsarenottobepublished,astheyareofnoforcetillconfirmedbytheHouse。Rushw。Parl。3。vol。2。74。3Grey401。Scob39。NorcantheyreceiveapetitionbutthroughtheHouse。

9Grey412。

Whenacommitteeischargedwithanenquiry,ifamemberprovetobeinvolved,theycannotproceedagainsthim,butmustmakeaspecialreporttotheHouse,whereuponthememberisheardinhisplace,oratthebar,oraspecialauthorityisgiventothecommitteetoenquireconcerninghim。9Grey523。

SosoonastheHousesits,andacommitteeisnotifiedofit,thechairmanisindutyboundtoriseinstantly,andthememberstoattendtheserviceoftheHouse。2Nals。319。

ItappearsthatonjointcommitteesoftheLordsandCommons,eachcommitteeactedintegrallyinthefollowinginstances。7Grey261,278,285,338。1Chandler357,462。Inthefollowinginstancesitdoesnotappearwhethertheydidornot。6Grey129。7Grey213,229,321。SEC。XII。

COMMITTEEOFTHEWHOLE。THEspeech,messagesandothermattersofgreatconcernment,areusuallyreferredtoacommitteeofthewholeHouse。6Grey311。Wheregeneralprinciplesaredigestedintheformofresolutions,whicharedebatedandamendedtilltheygetintoashapewhichmeetstheapprobationofamajority。ThesebeingreportedandconfirmedbytheHouse,arethenreferredtooneormoreselectcommittees,accordingasthesubjectdividesitselfintooneormorebills。Scob。36,44。Propositionsforanychargeonthepeopleareespeciallytobefirstmadeinacommitteeofthewhole。3Hats。127。Thesenseofthewholeisbettertakenincommittee,becauseinallcommitteeseveryonespeaksasoftenashepleases。Scob。49。TheygenerallyacquiesceinthechairmannamedbytheSpeaker:but,aswellasallothercommittees,havearighttoelectone,somemember,byconsent,puttingthequestion。Scob。36。3Grey301。TheformofgoingfromtheHouseintocommittee,is,fortheSpeaker,onmotion,toputthequestionthattheHousedonowresolveitselfintoacommitteeofthewhole,totakeunderconsiderationsuchamatter,namingit。Ifdeterminedintheaffirmative,heleavesthechair,andtakesaseatelsewhere,asanyothermember;andthepersonappointedchairmanseatshimselfattheclerk\'stable。Scob。36。TheirquorumisthesameasthatoftheHouse;andifadefecthappens,thechairman,onamotionandquestion,rises,theSpeakerresumesthechair,andthechairmancanmakenootherreportthantoinformtheHouseofthecauseoftheirdissolution。Ifamessageisannouncedduringacommittee,theSpeakertakesthechair,andreceivesit,becausethecommitteecannot。

2Hats。125,126。

Inacommitteeofthewhole,thetellersonadivision,differingastothenumbers,greatheatsandconfusionarose,anddangerofadecisionbythesword。TheSpeakertookthechair,themacewasforciblylaidonthetable,whereupon,themembersretiringtotheirplaces,theSpeakertoldtheHouse\"hehadtakenthechairwithoutanorder,tobringtheHouseintoorder。”Someexceptedagainstit;butitwasgenerallyapprovedastheonlyexpedienttosuppressthedisorder。Andeverymemberwasrequired,standingupinhisplace,toengagethathewouldproceednofurtherinconsequenceofwhathadhappenedinthegrandcommittee,whichwasdone。

3Grey128。

Acommitteeofthewholebeingbrokenupindisorder,andthechairresumedbytheSpeakerwithoutanorder,theHousewasadjourned。Thenextdaythecommitteewasconsideredastherebydissolved,andthesubjectagainbeforetheHouse;anditwasdecidedintheHouse,withoutreturningintocommittee。3Grey130。

Nopreviousquestioncanbeputinacommittee;norcanthiscommitteeadjournasothersmay;butiftheirbusinessisunfinished,theyrise,onaquestion,theHouseisresumed,andthechairmanreportsthatthecommitteeofthewholehave,accordingtoorder,hadundertheirconsiderationsuchamatterandhavemadeprogresstherein;butnothavinghadtimetogothroughthesame,havedirectedhimtoaskleavetositagain。Whereuponaquestionisputontheirhavingleave,andonthetimewhentheHousewillagainresolveitselfintoacommittee。Scob。38。Butiftheyhavegonethroughthematterreferredtothem,amembermovesthatthecommitteemayrise,andthechairmanreporttheirproceedingstotheHouse;

whichbeingresolved,thechairmanrises,theSpeakerresumesthechair,thechairmaninformshimthatthecommitteehavegonethroughthebusinessreferredtothem,andthatheisreadytomakereportwhentheHouseshallthinkpropertoreceiveit。IftheHousehavetimetoreceiveit,thereisusuallyacryof\"now,now,\"whereuponhemakesthereport;butifitbelate,thecryis\"to-morrow,to-morrow,\"or\"onMonday,&;c,\"oramotionismadetothateffect,andaquestionputthatitbereceivedto-morrow,&;c。Scob。38。

InotherthingstherulesofproceedingaretobethesameasintheHouse。Scob。39。SEC。XIII。

EXAMINATIONOFWITNESSES。COMMONfameisagoodgroundfortheHousetoproceedbyenquiry,andeventoaccusation。ResolutionHouseCommons1。Car。1。1625。Rush。L。Parl。115。1Grey16……22。92。8Grey21,23,27,45。

AstheheadsofimpeachmentwereseverallyreadagainsttheLordClarendonin1667,somememberinhisplace,statedtotheHouse,\"thatseveralpersonshadundertakentomakethatheadgood。”Or,\"thatthememberhadheardthisfromacertaingreatlord。”Or,\"thatthiswastoopublictostandinneedofproof。”Or,inoneinstance,\"thatthememberdidnotdoubtthatitwillbemadeout。”St。Tr。558。4Hats。137。

WitnessesarenottobeproducedbutwheretheHousehaspreviouslyinstitutedanenquiry。2Hats。102。northenareordersfortheirattendancegivenblank。3Grey51。TheprocessisasummonsfromtheHouse。4。Hats。255,258。

Whenanypersonisexaminedbeforeacommittee,oratthebaroftheHouse,anymemberwishingtoaskthepersonaquestion,mustaddressittotheSpeakerorChairman,whorepeatsthequestiontotheperson,orsaystohim,\"youhearthequestion,answerit。”Butiftheproprietyofthequestionbeobjectedto,theSpeakerdirectsthewitness,counselandparties,towithdraw;fornoquestioncanbemovedorput,ordebatedwhiletheyarethere。2Hats。108。Sometimesthequestionsarepreviouslysettledinwritingbeforethewitnessenters。Ib。106,107。8Grey64。ThequestionsaskedmustbeenteredintheJournals。3Grey81。ButthetestimonygiveninanswerbeforetheHouseisneverwrittendown;butbeforeacommitteeitmustbe,fortheinformationoftheHouse,whoarenotpresenttohearit。7Grey52,334。

IfeitherHousehaveoccasionforthepresenceofapersonincustodyoftheother,theyasktheothertheirleavethathemaybebroughtuptothemincustody。3Hats。52。

Amember,inhisplace,givesinformationtotheHouseofwhatheknowsofanymatterunderhearingatthebar。Jour。H。ofC。January22,1744……5。

EitherHousemayrequest,butnotcommandtheattendanceofamemberoftheother。TheyaretomaketherequestbymessagetotheotherHouse,andtoexpressclearlythepurposeofattendance,thatnoimpropersubjectofexaminationmaybetenderedtohim。TheHousethengivesleavetothemembertoattend,ifhechuseit;waitingfirsttoknowfromthememberhimselfwhetherhechusestoattend,tillwhich,theydonottakethemessageintoconsideration。Butwhenthepeersaresittingasacourtofcriminaljudicature,theymayorderattendance;unlesswhereitbeacaseofimpeachmentbytheCommons。Thereitistobearequest。3Hats。17。9Grey306,406。10Grey133。

Counselaretobeheardonlyonprivate,notonpublicbills,andonsuchpointsoflawonlyastheHouseshalldirect。10Grey61。SEC。XIV。

ARRANGEMENTOFBUSINESS。THESpeakerisnotpreciselyboundtoanyrulesastowhatbillsorothermattershallbefirsttakenup,butislefttohisowndiscretion,unlesstheHouseonaquestiondecidetotakeupaparticularsubject。Hakew。136。

Asettledorderofbusinessis,however,necessaryforthegovernmentofthepresidingperson,andtorestrainindividualmembersfromcallingupfavoritemeasures,ormattersundertheirspecialpatronage,outoftheirjustturn。ItisusefulalsofordirectingthediscretionoftheHouse,whentheyaremovedtotakeupaparticularmatter,totheprejudiceofothershavingpriorityofrighttotheirattentioninthegeneralorderofbusiness。

InSenate,thebillsandotherpaperswhichareinpossessionoftheHouse,andinastatetobeactedon,arearrangedeverymorning,andbroughtoninthefollowingorder。

1。Billsreadyforasecondreadingareread,thattheymaybereferredtocommittees,andsobeputunderway。Butif,ontheirbeingread,nomotionismadeforcommitment,theyarethenlaidonthetableinthegeneralfile,tobetakenupintheirjustturn。

2。Aftertwelveo\'clock,billsreadyforitareputontheirpassage。

3。ReportsinpossessionoftheHouse,whichoffergroundsforabill,aretobetakenup,thatthebillmaybeorderedin。

4。BillsorothermattersbeforetheHouseandunfinishedontheprecedingday,whethertakenupinturn,oronspecialorder,areentitledtoberesumedandpassedonthroughtheirpresentstage。

5。Thesemattersbeingdispatched,forpreparingandexpeditingbusiness,thegeneralfileofbillsandotherpapersisthentakenup,andeacharticleofitisbroughtonaccordingtoitsseniority,reckonedbythedateofitsfirstintroductiontotheHouse。Reportsonbillsbelongtothedatesoftheirbills。

Inthiswaywedonotwasteourtimeindebatingwhatshallbetakenup:wedoonethingatatime;followupasubjectwhileitisfresh,andtillitisdonewith;cleartheHouseofbusinessgradatimasitisbroughton,andprevent,toacertaindegree,itsimmenseaccumulationtowardsthecloseofthesession。

ArrangementhowevercanonlytakeholdofmattersinpossessionoftheHouse。Newmattermaybemovedatanytime,whennoquestionisbeforetheHouse。Suchareoriginalmotions,andreportsonbills。SucharebillsfromtheotherHouse,whicharereceivedatalltimes,andreceivetheirfirstreadingassoonasthequestionthenbeforetheHouseisdisposedof;andbillsbroughtinonleave,whicharereadfirstwheneverpresented。