Signing of bills.

Presentat'n of bills to the Gover

nor.

Resoluti'ns

in the enrolled bill, and make their report forthwith to the House in which the bill originated.

18. After examination and report, each bill shall be signed in the respective Houses, first by the Speaker of the Assembly, then by the President of the Senate.

19. After a bill shall have been thus signed in each House, it shall be presented by the Committees on Enrolled Bills to the Governor for his approval, it being first endorsed on the back of the roll, certifying in which House the same originated, which certificate shall be signed by the Chief Clerk of such House. Said committees shall jointly report the day of presentation to the Governor, which report shall be entered on the journal of each House.

20. All orders, resolutions and votes which are to be to take the presented to the Governor for his approval, shall, also, in same course the same manner, be previously enrolled, examined and signed, and then be presented in the same manner, and by the same committee, as is provided in case of bills.

as bills.

Accounts to

be verified.

All papers claiming

OF CLAIMS, ETC.

21. No account presented shall be acted on, unless verified by affidavit of the person in whose favor the same may be.

22. All petitions, claims, bills, accounts or demands money to be asking for an appropriation of money, shall be preserved preserved. by the committee to whom the same may be referred; and such committee shall endorse on every such petition, claim, bill, account or demand, whether they report in favor of allowing or disallowing the same; and if in favor of allowing a part thereof, only, then the sum so reported. After such committee shall have reported upon the same, such petition, claim, bill, account or demand, and every of them, shall be delivered to the Chief Clerk of the House in which the same was first presented, to be filed by such Clerk, and delivered, at the close of the session, to the Sec'y of State. 23. Resolutions involving the appropriation of money, appropria'g for printing the Governor's Message, or other public documents, shall receive the joint concurrence of the two Houses.

Resoluti'ns

money.

Joint Convention.

Adj'urnm't

JOINT CONVENTION, ETC.

24. Whenever there shall be a joint convention of the two Houses, the proceedings shall be entered at length on the journal of each House. The Lieutenant Governor or President of the Senate shall preside over such joint convention, and the Chief Clerk of the Senate shall act as Clerk thereof, assisted by the Chief Clerk of the Assembly: Provided, That the Lieutenant Governor shall not act in said convention except as presiding officer, and in no case shall have the right to give the casting vote.

25. Neither House shall adjourn during any session thereof, without the consent of the other, for a longer period than three days.

MANUAL OF

CUSTOMS, PRECEDENTS AND FORMS.

ORGANIZATION.

The Legislature convenes at 12 o'clock, M., on the second Wednesday in January in each year.

Custom, so prevalent and so ancient as to have the force of law, has made it the duty of the Chief Clerk of the previous Assembly to call to order, and to conduct the proceedings generally, until a Speaker is chosen.

The Secretary of State furnishes to the Clerk a certified statement of the names of the members elect, which is read. The members then advance to the Clerk's desk, generally the delegation of each county by itself, and subscribe the oath of office.

It often happens, that by neglect of the proper county officer, to return the proceedings of the county canvassers, some members find their election not to be on record in the Secretary's office. In such case, the certificate held by the member himself, should be produced to the Clerk. This answers every purpose, and should always be secured by members elect, from the Clerk of their county.

The oath of office is then administered to the members elect. It may be administered by the Speaker, the President of the Senate, the Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, or any of the Judges of the Supreme Court. It has been administered in this State, usually, by one of the Judges. Members coming in after the first day of the session are sworn in by the Speaker.

After all are sworn, the roll is called, when, if a quorum is found present, the Clerk declares the House to be qualified and competent to proceed to business.

If the parties in the Assembly have determined their choice for officers, the election proceeds forthwith; if not, an adjournment is had until the next day.

The election for Speaker, Clerk and Sergeant-at-Arms, is required to be viva voce, and these are the only offices which the Assembly can fill.

The roll is called, and each member announces audibly the name of the candidate of his choice.

The Clerk announces the result, and names a committee to conduct the Speaker elect to the chair; the other elections proceed in the same manner, except that when the result is announced by the Speaker, the officer elect advances to the Clerk's desk and is sworn in by the Speaker.

A committee is then appointed to wait on the Senate, and inform them that the Assembly is organized; or the Clerk is directed, by resolution to inform the Senate of the fact.

A Joint Committee of both Houses is then appointed to convey a like message to the Governor, and inform him that the Houses are in readiness to receive any communication from him.

The Senate and Assembly have usually assembled in Joint Convenvention, in the Assembly Chamber upon some day and hour suggested by the Governor, during the first week of the session, to hear his annual message.

The message has been read sometimes by his Private Secretary and sometimes by the Clerk of one of the Houses.

At the first opportunity after hearing the message read, the various recommendations therein contained, are referred, by resolution, to appropriate Standing Committees, or to Select Committees.

Standing Committees are appointed by the Speaker at as early a day in the session as is possible. They consist of five members to each committee, except that on Railroads, which consists of nine members, the Joint Committee on Printing, and the Joint Committee on Local Laws, which consist of three members each.

DRAWING OF SEATS.

The drawing of seats by lot has been observed since the Assembly first took possession of the new Assembly Chamber.

The method heretofore pursued is as follows:

The members leave their seats, and take places in the open area behind the seats.

The Clerk having placed in a box, slips of paper containing the names of members respectively, a page or messenger draws them therefrom.

The Clerk announces each name as it is drawn, and the member named selects his seat, and occupies it until the drawing is completed.

COMPENSATION.

"Each member of the Legislature shall receive for his services, two dollars and fifty cents for each day's attendance during the session, and ten cents for every mile he shall travel in going to and returning from the place of the meeting of the Legislature, on the most usual route."-Con., Art. 4, Sec. 21. "The S, eaker of the Assembly shall be entitled to receive for every day's attendance during the session of the Assembly, two dollars and fifty cents in addition to his per diem as a member of the Assembly.--R. S., page 120, Sec. 10.

It is customary to pay the mileage of members both ways, at the commencement of the session, upon the certificate of the Speaker

and Clerk, as to the proper sum to which each member is entitled. The members are entitled to the per diem due them, whenever demanded. Since 1862, members have received their per diem certificates from the Chief Clerk at regular intervals of twenty days; which course is preferable on many accounts to the former method of drawing certificates only when demanded by members.

PAY OF OFFICERS.

Chapter 136, General Laws, 1860.

Sec. 1. There is hereby annually appropriated out of any money in the State Treasury not otherwise appropriated, a sum sufficient to pay the per diem of officers of the Legislature, as follows: To the Chief Clerks, each, five dollars; to the Assistant Clerks, and Sergeant-at-Arms, each, four dollars; to all other Clerks, Postmast er and Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms, each, three dollars; to the Assistant Postmaster, Doorkeeper and Firemen, each two dollars and fifty cents; to all Messengers, each, one dollar and fifty cents.

SEC. 2. The per diem hereby established shall only be allowed from the commencement to the adjournment of the Legisiature, and each of the officers mentioned in this act is hereby authorized to receive his per diem from the Treasury on the certificate of the presiding officers of their respective Houses, as to the number of days attendance.

DUTIES OF OFFICERS.

SPEAKER. The duties of this officer are generally as follows: To open the session, at the time to which the Assembly is adjourned by taking the chair and calling the members to order.

To announce the business before the Assembly in the order in which it is to be acted upon;

To receive and submit, in the proper manner, all motions and propositions presented by the members;

To put to vote all questions which are regularly moved, or necessarily arise in the course of proceedings, and to announce the result;

To restrain the members when engaged in debate, within the rules of order;

To enforce on all occasions the observance of order and decorum among the members. ;

To inform the Assembly, when necessary, or when referred to for the purpose, in a point of order or practice;

To authenticate, by his signature, when necessary, all the acts, orders and proceedings of the Assembly;

To name the members (when directed to do so in a particular

case, or when it is a part of his general duty by the rules) who are to serve on committees; and in general

To represent and stand for the Assembly, declaring its will, and in all things obeying its commands. Every officer of the House is subordinate to the Speaker, and, in all that relates to the prompt and correct discharge of official duty, is under his supervision.

CHIEF CLERK.-He has the care and custody of all the papers and records, and arranges in its proper order, from day to day, after its inception, all the business of the House. He must, in order to have a proper knowledge of the affairs of his department, apportion, systematize and personally supervise the labor of all his subordinates, and, when not called therefrom by more important duties, should officiate in person at the reading desk. The duties of his subordinates are properly his duties, as all are performed under his direction, and he is responsible for any deficiencies. It is his duty to prepare and furnish to the public printer, an accurate record of each day's proceedings, and a copy of every bill, report and other thing ordered to be printed, on the same day such orders are made;" to keep the pay accounts of members and officers, and issue his certificates of per diem to them; to deliver the messages of the Assembly to the Senate; to sign subpoenas; he can permit no records nor papers belonging to the Assembly to be taken out of his custody, otherwise than in the regular course of business; " and shall report any missing papers to the notice of the Speaker.

66

It is his duty to prepare an index to the Journal, at the close of the session, and to be present at the opening of the next session, and attend to such preliminary business as may be necessary, and conduct the proceedings therein until a Speaker is elected, and perform the duties of Clerk thereof until his successor is chosen and qualified.

He is by law responsible for the safe keeping of all bills and other documents in possession of the Assembly, and for the proper registry of all proceedings; and is required at the close of the session, to deposit all papers in his possession as Chief Cierk, properly classified and labelled, with the Secretary of State.

A more detailed description of the labors connected with the clerkship will be found under the next head.

REGULATIONS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF THE CLERK.

To ensure a systematic and correct performance of the duties of their department, the Chief Clerks of the two Houses have established the following regulations: