Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

been the general practice, however, to this time. It has been regarded as necessary that a quorum shall not merely be present, but shall also act.*

8. The Internal Organization of the Legislative Houses.

The constitution vests the independent power of internal organization in each house, by conferring upon each the right to elect its own officers 1 and to determine its own rules of discipline and procedure, and by giving each house power to compel attendance of members. This is the general principle; but the constitution limits these general powers in four respects, viz; it makes the Vice-President the presiding officer of the Senate; 2 it requires at least a two-thirds majority of a quorum to expel a member from either house in the administration of its rules of discipline; it requires each house to keep a journal of its proceedings, and to publish the same from time to time, except such parts as in the judgment of the house concerned demand secrecy; and it requires the record of the yeas and nays upon the journal of either house, in regard to any question, at the desire of one-fifth of the members present. Within these limits each house is entirely free to form its own parliamentary law, at its own will and discretion, in so far as concerns its own members. The only question is how far it can make its will in this respect valid upon outsiders. Each house may certainly expel outsiders from its chamber at will. The publicity of procedure required by the constitution is entirely satisfied by the keeping of the journal. On the other hand, the Supreme Court has decided that the constitution confers no general power upon either house to punish outsiders for contempt. The Court holds that the general power to punish for contempt is in

* The House of Representatives made a rule on February 14, 1890, authorizing its clerk on the demand of a member or the suggestion of the Speaker to count a quorum by adding the names of those present but not answering the roll call to those answering, and the Supreme Court of the United States has pronounced the rule constitutional. United States v. Ballin, 144 U. S. Reports, p. 1. 1 United States Constitution, Art. I, sec. 2, § 5; Ibid. Art. I, sec. 3, § 5. 8 Ibid. Art. I, sec. 5, § 2. 5 Ibid. Art. I, sec. 5, § 3

2 Ibid. Art. I, sec. 3, § 4.

4 Ibid. Art. I, sec. 5, § 3.

its nature a judicial power; that Congress, or either house thereof, can exercise it in the determination of those matters only concerning which the constitution confers judicial power upon Congress, or either house thereof; that these matters are but four in number, viz; the punishment of its own members for disorderly behavior or for failure to attend its sessions, the decision of contested elections, the determination of the qualifications of members, and the impeachment of the officers of the government; that where the examination of outsiders as witnesses is necessary to the performance of these duties, the Congress, or either house, may summon outsiders as witnesses and may punish persons summoned for failing to appear or for any contempt in the course of the proceedings.1 The Court further holds that, in the case either of members or outsiders, the punishment must be confined, in time, to the session during which the condemnation occurs and cannot be graver than imprisonment during the remainder of the session.2

9. The Mode of Legislation.

The general principles are that either house may initiate legislation upon any subject; that any project introduced under any form must, to become law, be passed by a simple majority vote (i.e. a majority of those voting, a quorun. being present) of each house and approved by the executive, or not vetoed by the executive within ten days from the date of its presentation to him (Sundays not counted), provided the session does not expire before the end of this period; and that a project vetoed by the executive must be repassed by a two-thirds vote of each house (i.e. by a two-thirds vote of those voting, a quorum being present), that house voting first in which the bill originated, and both houses voting by yea and nay, and entering the vote upon their journals.3

1 Kilbourn v. Thompson, 103 U. S. Reports, 168.

2 Anderson v. Dunn, U. S. Reports, 6 Wheaton, 204.

3 United States Constitution, Art. I, sec. 7, § 2; Ibid. Art. I, sec. 7, § 3.

There are but two exceptions to these general principles. One requires that all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives and confines the power of the Senate in regard to revenue bills to the function of amending the bills originated in the House.1 The constitution does not expressly require that all projects for raising revenue shall be by bill, though I think this is implied in the language of this clause. If, however, an attempt should be made to enact a law for the raising of revenue, which should not be proposed in the form of a bill, it is manifest that the proposition must also originate in the House of Representatives. The other exception is that a resolution to adjourn - which, as we already know, requires the concurrence of the two houses, if the adjournment is for a longer period than three days or to any other place than that in which the houses shall be at the time sitting, is not subject to approval or disapproval by the executive.2

All the details of the process, such as the conditions under which an individual member may propose bills, resolutions, etc., the reading of the bills, their reference, the reports thereon, their order upon the calendar, the rules of debate thereon, etc., are determined by each house for itself under the power to construct its own parliamentary procedure. These therefore are subjects with which we have nothing to do in a work devoted strictly to the general principles of political science and constitutional law.

1 United States Constitution, Art. I, sec. 7, § I.

2 Ibid. Art. I, sec. 7, § 3.

CHAPTER II.

THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENT OF THE ENGLISH GOVERNMENT.

1. The General Principle of Legislative Organization. The custom of the constitution recognizes the bicameral system, with general parity of powers in the two chambers. The only inequality in this case is the exclusive right of the lower house to control the budget, both as to taxation and appropriation. This places the balance of power, certainly, in the House of Commons. The regular period of mandate. in the Commons is seven years, and the change of mandates is total. In the House of Lords the mandates are, for the most part, permanent.

2. The Sources from which the Legislature proceeds.

These are different for the two houses. The lower house proceeds from suffrage, while the upper proceeds from hereditary right, suffrage, appointment and office.

The suffrage which is the basis of the lower house has been brought out of great confusion into some order by the Representation of the People's Act of 1884.2 This act does not pretend to regulate the whole subject. It is to be taken in connection with all previous acts, but it removes the inconsistencies of the previous law and makes a fairly uniform, homogeneous and intelligible law of suffrage for the entire kingdom.

The qualifications which must be possessed by the individual to authorize him to vote for a member of the House

1 Anson, Law and Custom of the Constitution, p. 224 ff.

2 Statutes of Parliament, 48 Victoria, c. 3.

of Commons are briefly as follows: The individual must be of the male sex. He must be twenty-one years of age.2 He must be a citizen, either by birth or naturalization.3 He must own an interest in real estate of the following character and value, viz; in English counties and English towns which are counties, freehold estate of inheritance or in occupation or acquired by marriage settlement, devise, benefice or office, of the clear yearly value of 40 shillings, or if not of inheritance nor in occupation nor acquired by marriage settlement, devise, benefice or office, of the clear yearly value of 5 pounds sterling; or copyhold, or any tenure other than freehold, of the clear yearly value of 5 pounds sterling; or leasehold, if originally created for a term of not less than 60 years, of the clear yearly value of 5 pounds sterling, or if for a term of not less than 20 years, of 50 pounds clear yearly value. A sub-lessee or assignee, if in occupation, has the same rights as to suffrage as the original lessee.1

In Scotch counties, the requirements are proprietorship, by any tenure, of lands and heritages of the yearly value of 5 pounds sterling; or life-leasehold, of the clear yearly value of 10 pounds sterling; or leasehold, if originally created for so long a term as 57 years, of the clear yearly value of 10 pounds sterling; or leasehold, if originally created for a term of not less than 19 years, of the clear yearly value of 50 pounds sterling."

5

In Irish counties, the law requires freehold, of the net yearly value of 5 pounds sterling; or life-leasehold, of the clear yearly value of 20 pounds sterling; or the whole lifetithe rent charge upon a rectory, vicarage or chapelry, of the clear yearly value of 20 pounds sterling; or leasehold, originally created for a term of at least 60 years, of the clear yearly value of 10 pounds sterling; or leasehold, originally

1 Anson, Law and Custom of the Constitution, p. 108.
2 Ibid.

3 Ibid. pp. 109, 110.

[blocks in formation]
« AnteriorContinuar »