for by the standing rules of the House; but questions and complications of questions often arise for which no provision has been made. In the determination of these, the custom is to follow precedent, or the usual parliamentary practice, where it is known. "Cushing's Manual" is the authority usually referred to in cases of this kind, because of its supposed applicability to most questions likely to occur in legislative business, and approaches more nearly, in the practice it lays down, to that which has of late years prevailed in the Assembly.

PROCESS OF PASSING BILLS.

As every new member will have the responsibility of looking after legislation for his locality, the following statement of the manner of introducing, forwarding and passing bills will be found convenient.

In the Senate, under the order of "introduction of bills" the districts are called in numerical order and each Senator having a bill to introduce rises in his place, and, addressing the President, sends the bill to the Clerk's desk, where it receives its first reading, and also its second reading by its title, unless the same is objected to, in which case the bill is read through, and then referred to the proper committee. Each bill must be in duplicate.

In the Assembly, bills may be introduced by a member at any time during each session, by depositing the same in duplicate in a box provided for that purpose; the same to be read a first time and referred to the appropriate committee at the opening of the next regular session, or may be reported by any standing or select committee to which the subject-matter has been referred.

No motion is necessary, unless a particular reference is desired.

No bill can be introduced otherwise than as above stated, except by report of a committee, by order of the body itself, or by message from the co-ordinate branch.

Where a bill is reported by a committee, without having been previously referred to them, it receives its first and second readings in the same manner as when introduced by a member.

After a bill has been reported by a standing or select committee, it goes upon what is called the "order of second reading of bills," which is a list of all the bills thus reported, arranged in their proper order. They then come up for consideration on any day when that order of business is reached. The bills must be taken up in their exact order, unless the House, by unanimous consent, direct otherwise, on a motion made for

that purpose. When a bill has been duly considered on second reading and is agreed to by the House, the bill is ordered to a third reading and referred to the Committee on Revision and when reported by the Committee on Revision is engrossed, compared, reported correct by the Committee on Engrossed Bills, and has its third reading in its order, on some subsequent day, when that order of business is reached.

Article III, 15, of the Constitution provides as follows:

No bill shall be passed or become a law unless it shall have been printed and upon the desks of the members, in its final form, at least three calendar legislative days prior to its final passage, unless the Governor, or the acting Governor, shall have certified to the necessity of its immediate passage, under his hand and the seal of the State; nor shall any bill be passed or become a law, except by the assent of a majority of the members elected to each branch of the Legislature; and upon the last reading of a bill, no amendment thereof shall be allowed, and the question upon its final passage shall be taken immediately thereafter, and the yeas and nays entered on the journal.

It is then delivered by the Clerk to the Senate, where it goes through the same stages which it has in the Assembly. Bills passed by one House have no preference in the other over bills introduced there, or vice versa, unless by special order to that effect, in accordance with the rules.

Article XII, § 2, of the Constitution pro vides:

After any bill for a special city law, relating to a city, has been passed by both branches of the Legislature, the House in which it originated shall immediately transmit a certified copy thereof to the mayor of such city, and within fifteen days thereafter the mayor shall return such bill to the House from which it was sent, or if the session of the Legislature at which such bill was passed has terminated, to the Governor, with the mayor's certificate thereon, stating whether the city has or has not accepted the

same.

* * *

Whenever, during the session at which it was passed, any such bill is returned without the acceptance of the city or cities to which it relates, or within such fifteen days is not returned, it may nevertheless again be passed by both branches of the Legislature, and it shall then be subject as are other bills, to the action of the Governor.

After the concurrence of both Houses in a bill, it is delivered by the Clerk of the House in which it originated to the Governor, except as specified above, and, if it receives his approval, is by him sent to the office of the Secretary of State, where it takes its place in the chapters of laws.

Joint or concurrent resolutions are offered under the order of motions and resolutions. After lying over one day, they may be called up for action whenever the same order of business is reached. If passed, they are delivered by the Clerk to the other House, and after being acted upon, are returned to the House

in which they originated, with an appropriate message. Certain resolutions, after passing both Houses, are engrossed and delivered by the Clerk of the House in which they originated, to the Secretary of State, and are published at the end of the volume of Session Laws. Should it be desirable, from any cause, to hasten the passage of a bill, it may be done, subject to the provision of section 15 of article 3 of the Constitution, with the unanimous consent of the House, or by a suspension of the rules for that purpose.

If unanimous consent cannot be obtained the following steps may be taken:

I. Give one day's notice of the intention to move to suspend the rule or rules which conflict with the object in view. The following form of notice is applicable to this case:

Mr. Smith gives notice that he will, at some future day, move to suspend the (insert the number of rule) rule in order that the bill entitled "An act," etc. (insert the title), may be considered out of its order.

On any subsequent day, a motion may be made, under the order of "Motions and Resolutions," to suspend the rules and refer the matter as desired. For this purpose the following form is applicable:

Pursuant to previous notice,