Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-07-26

es, the House instructs them TO re.
port back. They may or may not
submit written report upon it. The
Committees are the real powers that
control the action OF the House and
shape legislation. 1t would be inn
possible for any member TO find time
to investigate and understand tenth
part Of the great number of subjects
embraced in the range of Congress
ional action, so that without Com
mitteos to digest and prepare business
and select tho important from unim-
portant, intelligent legislation would
be on. Of the question.
We come to the manner in which
a committee brings its business be-
fore the House and secures action
upon it. Four out of the fifty-two
committees cSn, under the rules, re-
port at any slime. These are Elec-
tions, Appropriations, Ways and
Means, and the Select Committee on
Reconstruction the first because it
IS important 70 decide questions af-
loctlng the rights of members to their
seats rs speedily as possible, and the
second and third on account of the
necessity of prompt action on meas
ures to raise revenue and appropriate
money to carry on the Government.
This privilege was accorded to the
Reconstruction Committee for polit-
zeal and not Legislative reasons, and
ought not to be longer continued.
This power of reporting at any time
does not enable these committees to
force the House to consider their
business when reported. The ques-
ton OF consideration can be raised,
and a majority can refuse to take up
the business. 1t is customary for
these privileged committees, when
reporting a bill, to get day fixed
for its consideration, when it will run
from day to day until disposed of.
All other Committees report in
turn when called in the "morning
hour" The morning hour, except
on Mondays, is set apart for reports
OF committees, and commences imme-
dlately after the House meets and
the journal has oeen read, unless de-
layed by some privilege or by unfin-
ished business the day before. Each
Committee is entitled, when it's turn
comes, to two successive mornin O
hours, but at the end Of the second,
if it has bill pending, it goes over,
and holds the hour from dav TO day,
until disposed Of Two different
calls OF Committees are constantly
progressing, for private business, on
Fridays and Saturdays, and for gem
eral business on Tuesdays, Wednes-
days and Neutrality-suspicious. bust
ness meaning measures affecting
individuals, such as claims, pensions,
etc. During long session, like the
present, a Committee will usually be
called about four times.
Let us suppose Mr.. Smiths bill to
have been agreed to by the commit
tee having it in charge, and that the
chairman of tho committee has pre-
scented it to the House in one Of TIE
morning hours to which his commit
tee is entitled. The member report
ing bill is entitled to the floor for
one hour before and one hour after
the previous question is ordered, and
may yield to others, giving a few
minutes TO one man or allowing
another TO offer an amendment. He
must demand the previous question
as soon as at the end of an hour, or
he loses the floor. When he demands
the previous question debates cease,
and the Speaker says ais there
second, " and proceeds to count the
House. If a majority vote by rising,
or by tellcrs, to second the demand,
the Speaker says, There is second,
shall the main question now be put ?"
This second vote may be taken by
yeas and nays, but the first cannot.
Ii majority vote in the affirmative,
the main question is ordered, and the
House proceeds to vote, without
debate, first on the amendments, if
any are pending, and then on order
ing the bill to be engrossed and read
o third time, which is usually mat
ter OF form only. If the yeas have
it, the bill is considered to be en-
crossed, and the reading goes no
further than the title. The next
vote Is directly on the vote as amend
ed, if any amendments have been
adopted, and finally, if it passes, a
motion to reconsider the vote by
which the bill was passed and to lay
the motion to reconsider on the table.
is always made, which, when agreed
to, clinches the matter, and prevents
any further Reconsideration of the
bill. If the previous question should
not be seconded and the main ques-
ton ordered, the debate is continued.
The usual way to defeat bill is to
move to lay it on the table, which is
always in order to do, and if the
motion prevails the bill is killed. A
motion TO strike out the enacting
clause has the same effect. A bill is
often recommitted to the committee
reporting it, sometimes with instruc-
tions to modify it, and often without
instructions, which is way of ex-
pressing the disapproval of the House
in milder form than by laying it
on the table and occasionally the
friends of the bill will have it recon-
mitted to save it from defeat, hoping
that the House will feel better dis
posed toward it on some future oc-
casion.
When bill passes the House it is
engrossed and taken TO the Senate.
If the Senate lays it on the table, or
in any way fails to pass it, the action
of the House goes for nothing. If it
is amended in the Senate il goes
back to the House with polite re-
quest for the concurrence of that
body. If the House concurs, the bill
is finally passed but if not, then a
Committee of Conference is appoint
ed, and sometimes q third and a
fourth. Whatever conference
apraas To nust he repOrted to and