RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

OF PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS.

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131. Members having petitions and memorials to present may hand them to the Clerk, indorsing the same with their names, and the reference or disposition to be made thereof; and such petitions and memorials shall be entered on the journal, subject to the control and direction of the Speaker, and if any petition or memorial be so handed in, which, in the judgment of the Speaker, is excluded by the rules, the same shall be returned to the member from whom it was received.-March 29, 1842.

[So much of the rules as authorized the presentation of petitions in the House was stricken out December 12, 1853. According to the practice under this rule a member may now take from the files petitions and memorials presented at a former Congress, and re-refer them.]

OF THE PREVIOUS QUESTION.

132. The previous question shall be in this form: "Shall the main question be now put?"-April 7, 1789. It shall only be admitted when demanded by a majority of the members present-February 24, 1812; and its effects shall be to put an end to all debate, and to bring the House to a direct vote upon a motion to commit, if such motion shall have been made; and if this motion does not prevail, then upon amendments reported by a committee, if any; thenAugust 5, 1848-upon pending amendments, and then upon the main question.-January 14, 1840. But its only effect, if a motion. to postpone is pending, shall be to bring the House to a vote upon such motion. Whenever the House shall refuse to order the main question, the consideration of the subject shall be resumed as though no motion for the previous question had been made. The House may also, at any time, on motion seconded by a majority of the members present, close all debate upon a pending amendment, or an amendment thereto, and cause the question to be put thereon; and this shall not preclude any further amendment or debate upon the bill. A call of the House shall not be in order after the previous question is seconded, unless it shall appear, upon an actual count by the Speaker, that no quorum is present.-March 16, 1860.

[The previous question was recognized in the rules established April 7, 1789, and could be demanded by five members (the Parliamentary law places it in the power of two members-one to move, the other to second). On the 23d December, 1811, it was placed on a footing with the yeas and nays; that

is, at the command of one-fifth of the members present. It remained so until the 24th February, 1812, when the rule was changed to its present form of a majority. According to former practice, the previous question brought the House to a direct vote on the main question; that is, to agree to the main proposition, to the exclusion of all amendments and incidental motions; but on the 14th of January, 1840, it was changed to embrace, first, pending amendments, and then the main proposition.

The original intent of the previous question was, to ascertain the sense of the House, in the early stages of a subject, as to the propriety of entertaining the matter; and if decided affirmatively, the debate went on; if decided negatively, the debate ceased, and the subject passed from before the House without motion or further question. This was the practice in Congress under the Confederation; and it is still the practice in the British Parliament. Now, by the practice of the House, as well as by the terms of the rule, it is reversed; if the motion for the previous question is decided in the affirmative, debate ceases, and the House proceeds to vote; if in the negative, the proceedings go on as if the motion for the previous question had not been made. Until the revision of the rules in March, 1860, whenever the previous question was seconded, and the main question ordered, pending a motion to postpone, the motion to postpone was cut off.]

[See Rules 36 and 37 for methods of proceeding under a call of the House.] 133. On a previous question there shall be no debate.-December 17, 1805. All incidental questions of order, arising after a motion is made for the previous question, and pending such motion, shall be decided, whether on appeal or otherwise, without debate.-September 15, 1837.

OF ADMISSION ON THE FLOOR.

134. No person except members of the Senate, their Secretary, heads of Departments, the President's private secretary, foreign ministers, the governor for the time being of any State, Senators and Representatives elect, judges of the Supreme Court of the United States and of the Court of Claims, and such persons as have by name received the thanks of Congress-March 15, 1867-shall be admitted within the hall of the House of Representatives-March 19, 1860-or any of the rooms upon the same floor or leading into the same-March 2, 1865; provided that ex-members of Congress who are not interested in any claim pending before Congress, and shall so register themselves, may also be admitted within the hall of the House; and no persons except those herein specified shall at any time be admitted to the floor of the House.-March 15, 1867.

[The first rule for the admission within the hall of other than members was adopted on the 7th January, 1802, and was confined to "Senators, officers of

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the General and State governments, foreign ministers, and such persons as members might introduce." On the 11th January, 1802, an attempt was made to amend so as to exclude persons "introduced by members," which failed. On the 8th November, 1804, a proposition was made to confine the privilege to Senators, which also failed. On the 17th December, 1805, officers of State governments were excluded. On the 1st February, 1808, a proposition was made to admit ex-members of Congress and the judges of the Supreme Court. After a good deal of debate it was rejected. On the 11th February, 1809, the rule was enlarged so as to admit judicial officers of the United States, as also exmembers of Congress. On the 25th February, 1814, those who had been heads of departments were admitted. On the 10th February, 1815, officers who had received the thanks of Congress were included; on the 12th January, 1816, the Navy Commissioners; on the 21st February, 1816, governors of States and Territories; March 13, 1822, the President's secretary. On the 26th January, 1833, the rule was further enlarged by admitting "such persons as the Speaker or a member might introduce," and on the 10th December, 1833, the House, by a vote almost unanimous, rescinded that amendment. On the 23d of December, 1857, soon after removing into the new hall in the south wing of the Capitol extension, the privilege of admission was restricted to "members of the Senate, their Secretary, heads of Departments, President's private secretary, the governor for the time being of any State, and judges of the Supreme Court of the United States." On the 19th of March, 1860, it was adopted in its present form, excepting the last clause, a proposition to admit ex-members having been rejected. The last clause, adopted March 2, 1865, was intended to prevent persons not entitled to the privilege of the hall from occupying the cloak and other adjoining rooms. January 29, 1878, the House adopted the following resolution, by yeas 155 to nays 92, viz: "Resolved, That the rule in regard to the admission of persons to the privileges of the floor be enforced, and the Speaker is requested to discontinue the practice of issuing passes, which has been indulged in by common consent." See Journal, first session Forty-fifth Congress, pp. 316, 317.]

OF REPORTERS.

135. Stenographers and reporters, other than the official reporters of the House, wishing to take down the debates, may be admitted by the Speaker to the reporters' gallery over the Speaker's chair, but not on the floor of the House; but no person shall be allowed the privilege of said gallery under the character of stenographer or reporter without a written permission of the Speaker, specifying the part of said gallery assigned to him; nor shall said stenographer or reporter be admitted to said gallery unless he shall state in writing for what paper or papers he is employed to report; nor shall he be so admitted, or, if admitted, be suffered to retain his seat, if he

shall be or become an agent to prosecute any claim pending before Congress; and the Speaker shall give his written permission with this condition.-December 23, 1857.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS OF THE SESSION.

136. After six days from the commencement of a second or subsequent session of any Congress, all bills, resolutions, and reports which originated in the House, and at the close of the next preceding session remained undetermined, shall be resumed and acted on in the same manner as if an adjournment had not taken place.— March 17, 1848. And all business before committees of the House at the end of one session shall be resumed at the commencement of the next session of the same Congress, as if no adjournment had taken place.-March 16, 1860.

[The word "resolutions," as herein used, applies to joint resolutions only.] [Prior to the last-named date it had been the practice for several years, near the close of the first session of a Congress, for the House to adopt a resolution making a similar provision. This amendment was adopted to save the necessity for the passage of a similar resolution at every Congress.]

MISCELLANEOUS.

137. Whenever confidential communications are received from the President of the United States, the House shall be cleared of all persons, except the members, Clerk, Sergeant-at-Arms, and Doorkeeper, and so continue during the reading of such communications, and (unless otherwise directed by the House) during all debates and proceedings to be had thereon. And when the Speaker, or any other member, shall inform the House that he has communications to make which he conceives ought to be kept secret, the House shall, in like manner, be cleared till the communication be made; the House shall then determine whether the matter communicated requires secrecy or not, and take order accordingly.-February 17, 1792, and December 30, 1793.

[In the rule as originally established, on the 17th of February, 1792, it is provided that the House be cleared of all persons, except "the members and the Clerk." In the rules of the 13th of November, 1794, the language used is "the members of the House and its officers." In the edition of 7th January, 1802, the terms "members and Clerk" are again used, and on the 23d December, 1811, it was changed to its present form, so as to include the Sergeantat-Arms and Doorkeeper. By Rule 10 it is provided that the Clerk, Sergeant

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at-Arms, Doorkeeper, and Postmaster, shall be sworn "to keep the secrets of the House."]

138. The rule for paying witnesses summoned to appear before this House, or either of its committees, shall be as follows: For each day a witness shall attend, the sum of three dollars; for each mile he shall travel in coming to or going from the place of examination, the sum of five cents each way; but nothing shall be paid for traveling when the witness has been summoned at the place of trial.-May 31, 1872, and March 29, 1876.

139. Maps accompanying documents shall not be printed, under the general order to print, without the special direction of the House.-March 2, 1837; September 11, 1837.

[See rule 100.]

140. No extra compensation shall be allowed to any officer or messenger, page, laborer, or other person in the service of the House, or engaged in or about the public grounds or buildings; and no person shall be an officer of the House, or continue in its employment, who shall be an agent for the prosecution of any claim against the government, or be interested in such claim otherwise than as an original claimant; and it shall be the duty of the Committee of Accounts to inquire into and report to the House any violation of this rule.-March 8, 1842.

141. When the reading of a paper is called for, and the same is objected to by any member, it shall be determined by a vote of the House.-November 13, 1794.

[As originally adopted, this rule contained, after the word "for," the words "which had before been read to the House." They were stricken out on the 14th December, 1795. See also Manual, page 70.]

142. When a question is postponed indefinitely, the same shall not be acted upon again during the session.—December 17, 1805.

143. Every order, resolution, or vote, to which the concurrence of the Senate shall be necessary, shall be read to the House, and laid on the table, on a day preceding that in which the same shall be moved, unless the House shall otherwise expressly allow.- April 7, 1789.

144. The rules of Parliamentary practice comprised in Jefferson's Manual shall govern the House in all cases to which they are appli cable, and in which they are not inconsistent with the standing rules and orders of the House, and joint rules of the Senate and House of Representatives.-September 15, 1837.