Wood, Charles, Charles S. Matthews, and James Hall Worth, Gorham A. Wright, John E. Wright, William. (See Thomas Jett and others) Yancey, Leighton, heirs of Yarnall, Peter, and Samuel Mitchell Y. Yates, Nancy. (See Nancy Moorefield and others) Yorke, Abigail. (See Sally Stanley and others) 1st Session. RULES AND ORDERS OF THE HOUSE. REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON THE RULES AND ORDERS OF THE HOUSE. JANUARY 7, 1840. Read, and made the special order of the day for Thursday, the 9th of January instant, at half past one o'clock. Mr. HOFFMAN, from the Select Committee to which the subject had been referred, submitted the following REPORT: The committee appointed under the resolution of the 21st of December, "referring the standing rules and orders of the House to a committee, with instructions to report such amendments thereof as they may deem expedient," report the present rules of the House, with the following amendments: 9th rule. Strike out the word "ballot," in the first line, and insert the word "election;" so that the rule, as amended, may read: "In all cases of election by the House, the Speaker," &c. 31st rule. In the first line, strike out the word "twice," and insert the Word "once." Strike out from the word "House," in the second line, and insert, "unless he be the mover, proposer, or introducer of the matter pending, in which case he shall be permitted to speak in reply, but not until every member choosing to speak shall have spoken;" so that the rule, as amended, may read: "No member shall speak more than once to the same question, without leave of the House, unless he be the mover, proposer, or introducer of the matter pending; in which case he shall be permitted to speak in reply, but not until every member choosing to speak all have spoken." 32d rule. Strike out the word "twice," in the third line. 42d rule. After the word "adjourn," in the first line, insert, "and a ction to fix the time to which the House shall adjourn." Strike out the "that," in the first line, and insert, "these motions;" so that the rue, as amended, may read: "A motion to adjourn, and a motion to fix the time to which the House shall adjourn, shall be always in order: these motions, and the motion to lie on the table, shall be decided without debate." 44th rule. Strike out after the word "and," in the fourth line, to the word “question," in the fifth line, inclusive, and insert: "its effects shall Blair & Rives, printers. be to put an end to all debate, and bring the House to a direct vote upon amendments reported by a committee, if any, upon pending amendments, and then upon the main question;" so that the rule, as amended, may read: "The previous question shall be in this form, Shall the main question be now put? It shall only be admitted when demanded by a majority of the members present, and its effects shall be to put an end to all debate, and bring the House to a direct vote upon amendments reported by a committee, if any, upon pending amendments, and then upon the main question. On a motion," &c. Resolved, That after the adjournment of this session of Congress, the Speaker direct the desks before the seats of members to be removed. Amendments to the Rules, proposed by Mr. Banks, a member of the Committee, with the assent of the Committee. The parts proposed to be stricken out are between brackets [ ]-the insertions in italics. 13. In case of any disturbance or disorderly conduct in the galleries or lobby, the Speaker (or Chairman of the Committee of the Whole House) shall have power to order the same to be cleared; and the lobbies to the south of the room of the sergeant at-arms, and of the post office, shall be preserved for the exclusive use of the members of Congress, and of those they may invite therein. 14. No person, except members of the Senate, their [Secretary,] officers, Heads of Departments, Treasurer, Comptrollers, Solicitor, Register, Auditors, Postmaster General, Assistants Postmaster General, President's Secretary, Chaplains to Congress, Judges of the United States, Foreign Ministers and their Secretaries, officers who, by name, have received, or shall hereafter receive, the thanks of Congress, [for their gallantry and good conduct displayed in the service of their country,] the Commissioners of the Navy Board, Governor [for the time being] of any State or Territory of the Union, [who may attend at the seat of the General Government during the session of Congress, and who may choose to avail himself of such privilege, such gentlemen as have been] ex-heads of Departments, [or] ex-members of [either branch of the Legislature, and, at the discretion of the Speaker, persons who belong to] Congress, members of such Legislatures of foreign Governments as are in amity with the United States, Mayors of the several cities of the District of Columbia, Commissioner of Public Buildings, shall be admitted within the Hall of the House of Representatives. 23. After one hour shall have been devoted to reports from committees,. and resolutions, with the exception of the Mondays specified in the preceding rule, it shall be in order, pending the consideration or discussion thereof, to entertain a motion that the House do now proceed to dispose of the business on the Speaker's table, and to the orders of the day; which being decided in the affirmative, the Speaker shall dispose of the business on his table in the following order, viz: 5th. Bills of the House and from the Senate, on the Speaker's table, on their engrossment, or on being ordered to a third reading, to be taken and considered in the order of time in which they passed to a second up reading. The messages, communications, and bills on his table having been disposed of, the Speaker shall then proceed to call the orders of the day; and while the business on the Speaker's table is thus being disposed of, no motion shall be received but to adjourn, or to reconsider a vote; nor shall it be in order to move a suspension of rules while the House is disposing of business under this rule. 25. Friday and Saturday in every week shall be set apart for the consideration of private bills and private business, in preference to any other, unless otherwise determined by [a majority] two-thirds of the House. 26. On the first and fourth Friday of each month the calendar of private bills shall be called over, and the bills to the passage of which no objection shall then be made shall be first considered and disposed of; after which, the House, or the Committee of the Whole, as the bills may be in the House or the Committee, shall return and take up in regular order the bills which had been objected to. Private bills, ordered to be engrossed on Friday or Saturday, shall receive their third reading on the day appointed, without waiting for the next private bill day. 27. When any member is about to speak in debate, or deliver any matter to the House, he shall rise from his seat, and respectfully address himself to "Mr. Speaker," and shall confine himself to the question under debate, and avoid personality. No member shall be recognised by the Speaker who addresses him from the main aisle of the House. Insert after Rule 28 An appeal may be admitted pending an appeal; but more than two appeals can not be pending at the same time. 29. If a member be called to order for words spoken in debate, the person calling him to order shall [repeat the words excepted to, and they shall be taken down in writing at the Clerk's table] reduce to writing the words excepted to, and hand them to the Clerk's table, for the decision of the Chair thereon; and no member shall be held to answer, or be subject to the censure of the House, for words spoken in debate, if any other member has spoken, or other business has intervened, after the words spoken, and before exception to them shall have been taken. 37. When a motion is made and seconded, it shall be stated by the Speaker; or, being in writing, it shall be handed to the Chair, and read aloud by the Clerk, before [debated] another motion be made affecting the same, or before it can be debated; but this shall not preclude a member from explaining or speaking to a proposition he may be about to submit. 40. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received but to adjourn, to lie on the table, for the previous question, to postpone [to a day certain, to commit or amend, to postpone indefinitely] indefinitelyto postpone to a day certain-to commit, or to amend; which several motions shall have precedence in the order in which they are arranged; and no motion to postpone indefinitely, to postpone to a day certain, or to commit, [or to postpone indefinitely,] being decided in the negative, shall be again allowed on the same day, and at the same stage of the bill or proposition. A motion to strike out the enacting words of a bill shall have precedence of a motion to amend, and, if carried, shall be considered equivalent to its rejection. 43. The hour at which every motion to adjourn is made, shall be entered on the Journal, if the yeas and nays be taken thereon. 47. Any member may call for the division of a question, which shall be divided if it comprehend propositions in substance so distinct, that one being taken away, a substantive proposition by adding the enacting or resolving and necessary connecting words, shall remain for the decision of the House. A motion to strike out and insert shall be deemed indivisible but a motion to strike out being lost, shall preclude neither amendment nor a motion to strike out and insert. 50. When a motion has been once made, and carried in the affirmative or negative, it shall be in order for any member of the majority to move for the reconsideration thereof, on the same or the succeeding day; and in case of a tie vote a motion to reconsider may be made by a member who voted in the negative. In questions in which two-thirds are necessary to carry the affirmative, a member who voted on that side which prevailed, may move a reconsideration; and a motion for reconsideration in this case shall be decided by a majority; and [such motion shall] motions to reconsider shall immediately take precedence of all other questions, except a motion to adjourn. 52. The unfinished business in which the House was engaged at the last preceding adjournment shall have the preference in the orders of the day, or when the hour arrives for proceeding to that class of business to which the unfinished business belonged, and no motion on any other business shall be received, when said hour arrives, without special leave of at least two-thirds of the House, until the former is disposed of. 72. It shall be the duty of the Committee of Ways and Means to take into consideration all such reports of the Treasury Department, and all such propositions relative to the revenue, as may be referred to them by the House; to inquire into the state of the public debt or the revenue, and of the expenditure; and to report, from time to time, their opinion thereon; [to examine into the state of the several public Departments, and particularly into the laws making appropriations of moneys, and to report whether the moneys have been disbursed conformably with such laws; and also to report, from time to time, such provisions and arrangements as may be necessary to add to the economy of the Departments, and the accountability of their officers.] After Rule 84, insert— It shall be the duty of the Committee on Manufactures to take into consideration all such petitions and matters or things touching manufactures and the manufacturing interest, and the improvement of the arts and sciences, as shall be presented, or shall or may come into question, and be referred to suid Committee, and to report thereon, from time to time. It shall be the duty of the Committee on Indian Affairs to take into consideration all such petitions, propositions, matters and things touching the relations of the United States and the citizens thereof, with Indians or Indian tribes, or touching the relations and intercourse of Indians with Indians, as shall be presented, or shall or may come into question and be referred to said Committee, and to report thereon from time to time. 96. It shall be the duty of the Committee of Accounts to superintend and control the expenditures of the contingent fund of the House of Representatives, and to audit and settle all accounts which may be charged thereon; and also to audit the accounts of the members for their [travel to and from the seat of Government, and their] attendance in the House. |