§ 476.

ative and negative, remains still to be put. See Execut. Jour., June 25, 1795. The same decision by President Adams.

SEC. XXXVII.—COEXISTING QUESTIONS.

It may be asked whether the House can be in possession of two motions or propositions

§ 476. Fundamental principles as to coexisting questions.

at the same time? so that, one of them being decided, the other goes to question without being moved anew? The answer must be special. When a question is interrupted by a vote of adjournment, it is thereby removed from before the House, and does not stand ipso facto before them at their next meeting, but must come forward in the usual way. So, when it is interrupted by the order of the day. Such other privileged questions also as dispose of the main question (e. g., the previous question, postponement, or commitment), remove it from before the House. But it is only suspended by a motion to amend, to withdraw, to read papers, or by a question of order or privilege, and stands again before the House when these are decided. None but the class of privileged questions can be brought forward while there is another question before the House, the rule being that when a motion has been made and seconded, no other can be received except it be a privileged one.

The principles of this provision must, of course, be viewed in the light of a more highly perfected order of business than existed in Jefferson's time (Rule XXIV). The motion to withdraw is not known in the practice of the House, not being among the motions enumerated in Rule XVI, § 4.

SEC. XXXVIII.-EQUIVALENT QUESTIONS.

§ 477. Former practice as to rejection and second reading of bills.

§§ 477,478.

If, on a question for rejection, a bill be retained, it passes, of course, to its next reading. Hakew., 141; Scob., 42. And a question for a second reading, determined negatively, is a rejection without further question. 4 Grey, 149. And see Elsynge's Memor., 42, in what cases questions are to be taken for rejection.

The House of Representatives has abandoned the question "Shall the bill be rejected?” (IV, 3391), and the question is now taken in accordance with Rule XXI, § 1. A vote is not taken on the second reading, the first test coming in the modern practice of the House on the engrossment and third reading.

478. Equivalent questions in

general.

Where questions are perfectly equivalent, so that the negative of the one amounts to the affirmative of the other, and leaves no other alternative, the decision of the one concludes necessarily the other. 4 Grey, 157. Thus the negative of striking out amounts to the affirmative of agreeing; and therefore to put a question on agreeing after that on striking out, would be to put the same question in effect twice over. Not so in questions of amendments between the two Houses. A motion to recede being negatived, does not amount to a positive vote to insist, because there is another alternative, to wit, to adhere.

The principles set forth in this paragraph are recognized by the practice of the House of Representatives; but Jefferson's use of the motion to strike out as an illustration is no longer justified, since the practice of the House under Rule XVI, § 7, does not permit the negative of the motion to strike out to be equivalent to the affirmative of agreeing.

§§ 479, 480.

§ 479. Equivalent questions on amendments

between

the Houses.

A bill originating in one House is passed by the other with an amendment. A motion in the originating House to agree to the amendment is negatived. Does there result from this a vote of disagreement, or must the question on disagreement be expressly voted? The question respecting amendments from another House are 1st, to agree; 2d, disagree; 3d, recede; 4th, insist; 5th, adhere.

The rejection of a motion to concur in a Senate amendment is equivalent to disagreeing, and the latter motion is not put. (Speaker Clark, June 21, 1911, 62d Cong., 1st sess., Cong. Rec., p. 2434.)

In the House of Representatives and the Senate the order of precedence of motions is as given in the Parliamentary law, and the motions take precedence in that order without regard to the order in which they are moved (V, 6270, 6324). But a motion to amend an amendment of the other House has precedence of the motion to agree or disagree (V, 6164, 6169-6171). But it has been held that when the previous question has been demanded or ordered on a motion to concur, a motion to amend is not in order (V, 5488). The motion to refer also takes precedence of the motions to agree or disagree (V, 6172-6174), but the demanding or ordering of the previous question does not prevent a motion to refer (V, 5575).

1st. To agree; 2d. To disagree.-Either of these con

§ 480. The

motions to agree and disagree as related to motions to amend.

cludes the other necessarily, for the positive of either is exactly the equivalent to the negative of the other, and no other alternative remains. On either motion amendments to the amendment may be proposed; e. g., if it be moved to disagree, those who are for the amendment have a right to propose amendments, and to make it as perfect as they can, before the question of disagreeing is put.

§§ 481-483.

3d. To recede.-You may then either insist or

§ 481. No equivalent questions on motions to recede, insist, and adhere.

adhere.

4th. To insist.-You may then either recede or adhere.

recede or insist.

5th. To adhere. You may then either

Consequently the negative of these is not equivalent to a positive vote the other way. It does not raise so necessary an implication as may authorize the Secretary by inference to enter another vote; for two alternatives still remain, either of which may be adopted by the House.

In the practice of the House of Representatives the voting down of the motion to recede and concur is tantamount to insistance, but is not equivalent to adherence. (Speaker Clark, July 2, 1918, 65th Cong., 2d sess., Cong. Rec., p. 8648.)

§ 482. Putting the question.

side.

SEC. XXXIX. THE QUESTION.

The question is to be put first on the affirmative, and then on the negative

Rule I, § 5, of the House of Representatives, provides more fully for putting the question.

§ 483. Effect of putting the question in

After the Speaker has put the affimative part of the question, any Member who has not spoken before to the question may rise and speak before the negative be put; because it is no full question till the negative part be put. Scob., 23; 2 Hats., 73.

ending debate.

§§ 484,485.

§ 484. Informal putting of the question.

But in small matters, and which are of course, such as receiving petitions, reports, withdrawing motions, reading papers, &c., the Speaker most commonly supposes the consent of the House where no objection is expressed, and does not give them the trouble of putting the question formally. Scob., 22; 2 Hats., 79, 2, 87; 5 Grey, 129; 9 Grey, 301.

$485. Obsolete requirements as

SEC. XL.-BILLS, THIRD READING.

To prevent bills from being passed by surprise, the House, by a standing order, directs that they shall not be put on their passage before a fixed hour, naming one at which the house is commonly full. Hakew., 153.

to reading and passage of bills.

The usage of the Senate is not to put bills on their passage till noon.

A bill reported and passed to the third reading, cannot on that day be read the third time and passed; because this would be to pass on two readings in the same day.

None of these restrictions is of effect in the modern practice of the House of Representatives. Rule XXI, § 1, permits a bill to be read a third time and passed on the same day, and it is in order to proceed with a bill at any time, unless the absence of a quorum be shown.