committees. The Speaker, as general manager of the rooms of the House, may so enter if he desires, and is exempted from this rule.

7. Committees may, on their own authority, give public hearings, in order to listen to the reports and addresses which the public may desire to make to them personally; and may also advertise that they are now considering certain matter or matters so that written opinions on such matters may be sent to said committees from all over the Island. The Speaker shall cause such advertisements to be published.

8. It shall be the duty of every committee to report and recommend to the House on all matters that may correspond to them in accordance with their respective functions. When in doubt as to the proper committee that a certain matter should be referred to, the House shall decide. It is understood that all matters relating to the receipts of the Island, as also to the form and manner of obtaining them shall be referred to the committee on Ways and Means. All matters pertaining to disbursements shall be referred to the Committee on Expenditures.

All matters pertaining to the system of Insular courts and proceedings thereof, shall be referred to the committee on Organization and Judicial Proceedings.

And all matters relating to the fundamental laws of the country, shall be referred to the Committee on Legislation.

9.

Committees are bound to report on all matters referred to them within the time of three days, unless an extension of time be granted by the House.

1.

RULE IX.

Order of Questions.

After the reading of the Journal the Speaker shall afford to the House or to any of the Delegates, an opportunity to introduce amendments to the same; after which the minutes shall be considered as approved.

By unanimous consent the reading of the Journal may be dispensed with.

The Speaker shall call the business for the day in the following form:

2. No other questions shall be considered, out of the preceding order, unless the House suspends the present rules.

3. The quorum, that is, the required number of Delegates that must be present to pass questions shall at least consist of eighteen Delegates.

4. Sittings shall, by the rules, be held at 8 o'clock A. M. to 12 o'clock M. unless that in the sitting next preceding it has been decided to hold said sittings at another hour.

5. If there be no quorum present during the session, the attending Delegates may order such measures as would compel the attendance of the absentees; and may, if ordered by the House, require the Sergeant-at-Arms to bring in the absentees, and the House is empowered to inflict such punishment as it may consider just, to such of the Delegates as are absent without consent and who do not satisfactorily explain their absence.

6. No Delegate can absent himself from the House, while in session, unless by consent of the Speaker, or in case of illness.

RULE X.
Bills.

1.

2.

All bills or joint resolutions shall be read three times before they pass. When a bill or joint resolution is introduced, the title and the name of its author shall be read, and in the session next succeeding it shall be read in its entirety, unless the majority decide that the title only shall be read. After this second reading, the Speaker shall ask the House whether the said bill or joint resolution shall then be considered. If the majority of the Delegates present decide in the affirmative, it shall be referred to the

proper Committee, after having been translated into English, or into Spanish, and printed in both languages. If the majority decide in the negative, then the said bill or joint resolution shall be considered as rejected. The bill or joint resolution taken into consideration shall be referred to a Committee other than that mentioned by the Speaker, when the House so orders by a vote of two-thirds of the attending Delegates. The bill having been printed in both languages, three copies shall be distributed to each Delegate. 3. When a bill or joint resolution comes back to the House, with the report of the Committee, the amendments made by the said Committee shall appear on the text of the bill, which fact shall not exclude the said amendments from appearing in the report proper. Said report shall then be submitted to the House, in accordance with paragraph 2, Section 1st, Rule 9th, and the House shall decide the day on which the question shall be debated, and the proper turn shall be given it, in accordance with paragraph 10, of the same Section. Between the presentation of the report and the debate there shall be an interval of twenty-four hours, unless the House shall decide that it be taken up the same day, or any other day. This debate shall take place in Committee of the Whole, unless the House shall order otherwise.

4. The third reading of a bill or joint resolution shall be in its entirety, after having been clearly written out and copied by the Committee on Enrolling and Engrossing. After this, it shall be put to a vote. The House may order that the third reading be limited to the title of the bill or joint resolution. The author of the bill or joint resolution shall have the right to withdraw the same at any time before the Committee makes its report thereon.

5. After a bill shall have been returned to the House, duly reported upon by the Committee to which it may have been referred, or at any moment before a final vote is taken thereon, the House shall have the right to refer it back to the same Committee or to some other Committee.

6. The Clerk shall number all bills in the order of introduction; and shall note thereon the day and hour in which they were introduced.

7. When the Speaker reports a bill from the Executive Council for the consideration of the House, the Clerk shall read its title for the first and second time unless the second reading be done in its entirety. After the said second reading the bill or joint resolution from the Executive Council shall be sent to the proper Committee and the same procedure shall be followed as with bills originating in the House.

RULE XI.

Of Debate.

1. When any Delegate desires to speak or deliver any document to be read to the House, he shall rise and respectfully address himself to the Chair, saying “Mr. Speaker."

The Speaker shall answer him: Mr. Delegate for the District of (here mention the District) and then the Delegate may address the House from any place on the floor or from the Clerk's desk, confining himself to the question under debate avoiding personality.

2. When two or more delegates rise at once, the Speaker shall name the member who is first to speak.

3. No member shall speak more than twice on the some question without special consent of the House, nor more than once until every Delegate desiring to speak shall have spoken. Neither shall a Delegate speak longer than fifteen minutes at a time, unless some other Delegate cedes him his time. It is ordered that on questions of "Appeals to the House" no Delegate shall speak more than once.

4. If any Delegate, in speaking, goes into personalities, or otherwise trangresses the rules of the House, the Speaker or any Delegate may call him to order, in which case he shall immediately sit down. The Delegate, called to order, shall have the right to appeal to the House, and the House shall decide by vote without debate; if the decision is in favor of the Pelegate called to order, he shall be at liberty to proceed When the House considers that the offence requires some punishment, the Delegate shall be liable to such punishment as the House may deem proper. The Speaker or the Delegate calling another Delegate to order, for words spoken in debate shall indicate the words excepted to, and the Clerk shall take note of said words and read aloud to the House. It is ordered that this question of order shall be reported immediately that the fault is committed, and in no case shall it be admitted thereafter.

5. Outside of the House no responsibility can be exacted from any Delegate for words spoken in debate or by reason of his vote.

6. During sessions no smoking shall be allowed.

7. No Delegate shall be permitted to vote if not present at the time that the Speaker put the question to a vote. Every Delegate, within the halls of the House at the time that a question is put to a vote, must cast his vote, unless he be prevented by the rules or for special reasons, excused by the House.

8. Any proposition to the House, which is not the introduction of a bill, or of a resolution, or joint resolution, shall for the purpose of these rules, be called and considered · as "a motion."

9. All motions shall be made by a Delegate, and seconded by another Delegate, without which requisite they shall not be considered by the Chair.

10. On the demand of the Speaker or of any of the Delegates verbal motions shall be reduced to writing, and the Clerk shall enter on the Journal the contents of all motions with the name of the member making them unless it be withdrawn before adjournment. 11. As soon as a motion is made and seconded, the Speaker shall submit the same to the House for debate and decision, and the question as to whether the House will consider it or not shall not be put unless so demanded by a Delegate.

12. When the Speaker has put any motion for debate, it shall then be considered as in possession of the House, but may be withdrawn by the Delegate making it, with the consent of the Delegate that seconded it, at any time during the debate, but not after it has been amended, or definitely decided on.

13. When the question under debate includes propositions susceptible of being considered separately, the Speaker shall divide them, if so demanded by a Delegate.

14. Every petition, memorial communication or any other document addressed to the House, may be introduced by the Speaker or by any of the Delegates; any one introducing them, shall briefly explain the contents of same, and it shall not be considered in the session when introduced, unless by consent of the House, and shall lay on the table to be considered in the order of introduction.

15. When the reading of a document is requested by a Delegate, and another Delegate objects to said reading, the House shall decide without debate, whether the said document shall be read or not.

16. Delegates shall have the absolute right to request the Speaker to procure for the House, by such means as may be found necessary, all precedents connected with legislative and administrative affairs of the Islands, be they of recent occurrence or of past epochs, it being understood that such requests shall be attended to by the Chair without opposition or debate, and being further understood that when such requests refer to matters under debate at the time they are made they shall not be granted without the consent of the House.

17. When a question is under debate in the House, no motion shall be received by the Speaker, except the following:

The foregoing motions shall have pereference in the order given, and the first two shall be decided without debate.

RULE XII.

Of the previous question

"The

Any Delegate may move "the previous question" on the matter under debate. previous question" having been moved and seconded, upon which no debate shall be allowed, the Speaker shall submit the same to the House in the following form:

"Shall the main question be voted," and if the decision of the House is in the affirmative, all debate shall cease, and no amendment or motion shall be received by the Speaker, who shall immediately put the question to a direct vote. If the result of the voting on "the previous question" is in the negative, the debate shall continue.

RULE XIII.
Reconsideration.

Any Delegate may move reconsideration of a question upon which a vote has been taken, provided he does so the same day that the said vote was taken, or the succeeding day in the morning session. If the question has been voted by a call of the roll, that is, by taking note of the names of Delegates voting one way or another, the reconsideration can only be moved by a Delegate of the majority.