3. He shall rise to put a question, but may state it sitting.—April 7, 1789.

4. Questions shall be distinctly put in this form, to wit: "As many as are of opinion that (as the question may be) say Ay;" and after the affirmative voice is expressed, “As many as are of the contrary opinion, say No." If the Speaker doubt, or a division be called for, the House shall divide; those in the affirmative of the question shall first rise from their seats, and afterwards those in the negative.* If the Speaker still doubt, or a count be required, by at least onefifth of a quorum of the members, the Speaker shall name two members, one from each side, to tell the members in the affirmative and negative; which being reported, he shall rise and state the decision to the House.-March 16, 1860.

5. The Speaker shall examine and correct the journal before it is read. He shall have a general direction of the Hall, and the unappropriated rooms in that part of the Capitol assigned to the House shall be subject to his order and disposal until the further order of the House. He shall have a right to name any member to perform the duties of the Chair, but such substitution shall not extend beyond an adjournment. December 23, 1811, and May 26, 1824.

6. No person shall be permitted to perform divine service in the chamber occupied by the House of Representatives, unless with the consent of the Speaker.-May 19, 1804.

7. In all cases of ballott by the House, the Speaker shall

* The manner of dividing the House, as originally established by the rule of April 17, 1789, was, that the members who voted in the affirmative went to the right of the Chair, those in the negative to the left. This was, doubtless, taken from the old practice of the House of Commons of England. The passing of the members to and fro across the House was found so inconvenient, and took up so much time, that the mode of dividing the House was, on the 9th of June, 1789, changed to the present form: the members of each side of the question rising in their seats and being there counted.

The word here used in the original formation of the rule was election. On the 14th January, 1840, it was changed to the word ballot. According to the practice, however, this rule is held to apply to all cases of election.

vote; in other cases he shall not be required to vote, unless the House be equally divided, or unless his vote, if given to the minority, will make the division equal; and in case of such equal division, the question shall be lost.*-April 7, 1789.

8. All acts, addresses, and joint resolutions, shall be signed by the Speaker; and all writs, warrants and subpoenas, issued by order of the House, shall be under his hand and seal, attested by the Clerk.-November 13, 1794.

9. In case of any disturbance or disorderly conduct in the galleries or lobby, the Speaker (or chairman of the Committee of the Whole House,) shall have power to order the same to be cleared.-March 14, 1794.

OF THE CLERK AND OTHER OFFICERS.

10. There shall be elected at the commencement of each Congress, to continue in office until their successors are appointed, a Clerk, Sergeant-at-arms, Doorkeeper, and Postmaster, each of whom shall take an oath for the true and faithful discharge of the duties of his office, to the best of his knowledge and abilities, and to keep the secrets of the House; and the appointees of the Doorkeeper and Postmaster shall be subject to the approval of the Speaker; and, in all cases of election by the House of its officers, the vote shall be taken viva voce.-March 16, 1860.†

*On a very important question, taken December 9, 1803, on an amendment to the Constitution, so as to change the form of voting for President and VicePresident, which required a vote of two-thirds, there appeared eighty-three in the affirmative, and forty-two in the negative; it wanted one vote in the affirmative to make the constitutional majority. The Speaker, (Macon,) notwithstanding a prohibition in the rule as it then existed, claimed and obtained his right to vote, and voted in the affirmative; and it was by that vote that the amendment to the Constitution was carried. The right of the Speaker, as a member of the House, to vote on all questions is secured by the Constitution. No act of the House can take it from him when he chooses to exercise it.

+ Until the adoption of this rule there was no law, resolution, rule, or order directing the appointment of the Clerk of the House. On the 1st of April, 1789, being the first day that a quorum of the House assembed under the

11. In all cases where other than members of the House may be eligible to an office by the election of the House, there shall be a previous nomination.-April 7, 1789.

12. In all other cases of ballot than for committees, a majority of the votes given shall be necessary to an election; and where there shall not be such a majority on the first ballot, the ballots shall be repeated until a majority be obtained.-April 7, 1789. And in all ballotings blanks shall be rejected, and not taken into the count in enumeration of votes, or reported by the tellers.-September 15, 1837.

13. It shall be the duty of the Clerk to make, and cause to be printed, and delivered to each member, at the commencement of every session of Congress, a list of the reports which it is the duty of any officer or department of the gov. ernment to make to Congress; referring to the act or reso lution, and page of the volume of the laws or journal in which it may be contained; and placing under the name of each. officer the list of reports required of him to be made, and the time when the report may be expected.-March 13, 1822.

14. It shall be the duty of the Clerk of the House, at the end of each session, to send a printed copy of the journals thereof to the Executive, and to each branch of the legis lature of every State.-November 13, 1794.

new Constitution, the House immediately elected a Clerk by ballot, without a previous order having been passed for that purpose; although in the case of a Speaker who was chosen on the same day, an order was previously adopted. A Clerk has been regularly chosen at the commencement of every Congress since. By the rules adopted in 1789, provision was made for the appointment of a Sergeant-at-arms and Doorkeeper. Immediately after the organization of the government under the present Constitution, a room was set apart in the Capitol for the reception and distribution of letters and packets to and from members of the House, without an order for that purpose, and was called the post office; it was superintended by the Doorkeeper and his assistants. On the 9th of April, 1814, a special allowance was made to the Doorkeeper to meet the expenses of this office. and he was authorized to appoint a Postmaster. The office continued on this footing till April 4, 1838, when an order was passed for the appointment of a Postmaster by the House itself. The provision for the election of all the officers of the House by a viva voce vote was December 10, 1839.

adopted

15. All questions of order shall be noted by the Clerk, with the decision, and put together at the end of the journal of every session.-December 23, 1811.

16. The Clerk shall, within thirty days after the close of each session of Congress, cause to be completed the printing and primary distribution, to members and delegates, of the Journal of the House, together with an accurate index to the same.-June 18, 1832.

17. There shall be retained in the library of the Clerk's office, for the use of the members there, and not to be withdrawn therefrom, two copies of all the books and printed documents deposited in the library. -December 22, 1826.

18. The Clerk shall have preserved for each member of the House, an extra copy, in good binding, of all the documents printed by order of either house at each future session of Congress.-February 9, 1831.

19. The Clerk shall make a weekly statement of the resolutions and bills (Senate bills inclusive) upon the Speaker's table, accompanied with a brief reference to the orders and proceedings of the House upon each, and the date of such orders and proceedings; which statement shall be printed for the use of the members.-April 21, 1836.

20. The Clerk shall cause an index to be prepared to the acts passed at every session of Congress, and to be printed and bound with the acts.-July 4, 1832.*

21. All contracts, bargains, or agreements, relative to the furnishing any matter or thing, or for the performance of any labor, for the House of Representatives, shall be made with the Clerk, or approved by him, before any allowance shall be made therefor by the Committee of Accounts.-January 30, 1846.

22. It shall be the duty of the Sergeant-at-arms to attend

* The Clerk is relieved of this duty by the Joint Resolution of September 28, 1850, which authorizes Little & Brown to furnish their Annual Statutes at Large instead of the edition formerly issued by the order of the Secretary of State.

the House during its sittings; to aid in the enforcement of order, under the direction of the Speaker;* to execute the commands of the House from time to time; together with all such process, issued by authority thereof, as shall be directed to him by the Speaker.-April 14, 1789.

23. The symbol of his office (the mace) shall be borne by the Sergeant-at-arms when in the execution of his office.April 14, 1789.†

24. The fees of the Sergeant-at-arms shall be, for every arrest, the sum of two dollars; for each day's custody and releasement, one dollar; and for travelling expenses for himself or a special messenger, going and returning, one-tenth of a dollar for each mile-April 14, 1789-necessarily and actually travelled by such officer or other person in the execution of such precept or summons.-March 19, 1860.

25. It shall be the duty of the Sergeant-at-arms to keep the accounts for the pay and mileage of members, to prepare checks, and, if required to do so, to draw the money on such checks for the members, (the same being previously signed by the Speaker, and indorsed by the member,) and pay over the same to the member entitled thereto.-April 4, 1838.

* The words in italics were inserted March 16, 1860.

At the time this rule was adopted, "a proper symbol of office" for the Sergeant-at-arms was directed to be provided, "of such form and device as the Speaker should direct." In pursuance of this order, a mace, or "symbol,” was procured, which represented the Roman fasces, made of ebony sticks, bound transversely with a thin silver band, terminating in a double tie or beau-knot near the top; at each end a silver band an inch deep, and on the top of each of the rods a small silver spear. A stem of silver, three-fourths of an inch in diameter, and two inches long from the centre of the fasces, supported a globe of silver about two and a half inches in diameter, upon which was an eagle, his claws grasping the globe, and just in the act of flight, his wings somewhat more than half extended. The eagle was massive silver, richly carved. The design was fine, and its whole execution beautiful; the entire height about three feet. The mace was destroyed at the conflagration of the Capitol on the 24th August, 1814, and was not replaced until recently. A temporary one was hastily gotten up (of common pine and painted) for the then next session of Congress, and was tolerated till the session of 1841-'42, when the one now in use was procured.