Assembly hall

“ In the daylight a warm dimness prevails. At night the Chamber looks more impressive, when a mellow radiance streaming from the lights through its glass ceiling falls upon the crowded benches. But to the uninstructed stranger accidentally straying into it on an off-day, its stiff arrangement of tiers of benches, upholstered in dark green, on each side, and the absence of any pictorial background, would suggest an assembly-room or debating-hall, with a certain air of distinction, it is true, but lacking character and soul. ”

“ It was a remarkable scene; a spectator could never have credited that this was an authoritative assembly into which the hermit had presented himself unbidden; it seemed rather as if that hall were the presence chamber of the wise and saintly man, and deputies from far and near—knight, merchant, and peasant—had gathered about him, and pressed forward to receive his judgment. With all the eloquence of wisdom, and a heartfelt interest, the venerable man addressed the assembly. ”

“ On the ground floor is the national prison and the stables, where the members of the council have the privilege of putting up their horses during the sessions. The kitchen is on a grand scale, with immense hearts and cauldrons. A staircase, which savors of antiquity, leads to the chamber on the first floor, where the council meets. It is a vast hall of an imposing aspect. At one end is a chair for the syndic, who sits as president of the assembly; along either wall are benches of oak for the twenty-four councillors; and between the corridors is a picture of Jesus Christ. ”

“ If a member was absent from the hall when the paper under consideration was read, even though absent on duty, he cannot insist on its being again read, as the convenience of the assembly is of more importance than that of a single member. ”

“ The party headquarters in the different assembly districts are largely in the nature of social clubs, and it is in considerable degree through social means that the control of the Hall over the poorer classes is maintained. ”

“ The president of the department undertook this commission. A deputation of twenty-four members was at once sent to meet Louis XVI. They found him in the large alley at the foot of the terrace of the Feuillants, a few steps from the staircase leading up to it, and which goes as far as the lobby through which one enters the hall occupied by the National Assembly. "Sire," said the leader of the deputation, "the Assembly, eager to contribute to your safety, offers to you and your family an asylum in its midst." ”

“ And immediately, from all ends of the city or the State, or from every State in the Union, all who feel an interest in the subject or question fly upon the wings of steam to the appointed place of meeting and at the appointed hour. The hotels and boarding-houses of the city are rapidly filled; they come together in the great hall of assembly, they shake hands, they become acquainted with one another, they make speeches, they vote, they carry their resolutions. ”

“ The House of Commons is an oblong, with rows of plain wooden benches on each side, leaving a space in the middle which is occupied by the table, whereon petitions are laid. At one end of this table is the mace: at the other, sit the clerks who record all proceedings that require to be noted. Close behind the clerks, and at one extremity of the apartment, is the Speaker's chair: galleries surround this hall of assembly;—the one for the reporters is immediately over the Speaker's chair; that for strangers occupies the other extremity of the oblong ”

“ An illegal assembly of men having taken possession of the hall of the house of representatives, and the police not being able to dislodge them, I respectfully request that you will immediately clear the hall and statehouse of all persons not returned as legal members of the house of representatives by the returning board of the State. ”

“ The Assembly's Procedure.—Federal laws, decrees, and resolutions are passed only by agreement of the two councils. Any measure may originate in either house and may be introduced by any member. There are committees upon various subjects, but bills are referred to them only by special vote. Committee members are chosen by the chamber directly or by the chamber's "bureau," as the chamber itself may determine. In each house a majority constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business, and measures are passed by a (p. 430) simple majority. Sittings, as a rule, are public. ”

“ Nobody wants a second chamber, except a few disreputable individuals. It is a valuable institution for any member of it who has no distinction, neither character, talents, nor estate. But a peer who possesses all or any of these great qualifications, would find himself an immeasurably more important personage in what, by way of jest, they call the Lower House.’
‘Is not the revising wisdom of a senate a salutary check on the precipitation of a popular assembly?’
‘Why should a popular assembly, elected by the flower of a nation, be precipitate? ”

“ The member upon whose motion the subject under discussion was brought before the assembly (or, in case of a committee’s report, the one who presented the report,) is entitled to be recognized as having the floor (if he has not already had it during that discussion) , notwithstanding another member may have first risen and addressed the chair. (b) No member who has once had the floor is again entitled to it while the same question is before the assembly, provided the floor is claimed by one who has not spoken to that question. ”

“ In all cases where his vote would affect the result, or where the vote is by ballot, he can vote. When a member rises to speak, he should say, “Mr. Chairman,” and the chairman should reply, “Mr. A;” he should not interrupt a speaker as long as he is in order, but should listen to his speech, which should be addressed to him and not to the assembly. The chairman should be careful to abstain from the appearance of partizanship, but he has the right to call another member to the chair while he addresses the assembly on a question; when speaking to a question of order he does not leave the chair. ”

“ Behind and to the right of the ministers gather the majority; behind and to the left of their leaders, the minority. Above the rear benches and over the outer aisles of the House, beyond "the bar," hang deep galleries from which the outside world may look down upon the eager contests of the two parties which thus sit face to face with only the aisle between them. From these galleries the fortunate listen to the words of leaders whose names fill the ear of the world.
The organization of the French Assembly is in the main similar to that of the British Commons. ”

“ When offering a motion or when desiring the floor for any purpose the speaker, after addressing the chair, should remain standing and silent until recognized by the chair. This recognition is shown by the chairman calling the name of the member, or by some sign of recognition, which signifies to the assembly who has the floor. (For exceptions see Sec. 79) . If more than one member asks the floor at the same time, upon the chair's decision as to which is entitled to the floor, all others should be seated and await another opportunity. ”

“ If there is a tie vote the chair is sustained, and if the chair is a member of the assembly he may vote to make it a tie, on the principle that the decision of the chair stands until reversed by a majority, including the chairman if he is a member of the assembly. In stating the question, the word "assembly" should be replaced by "society," or "club," or "board," etc., as the case may be. The announcement of a vote is not a decision of the chair. If a member doubts the correctness of the announcement he cannot appeal, but should call for a "Division" [25] . ”

“ As the interests of the assembly are best subserved by allowing the floor to alternate between the friends and enemies of a measure, the Chairman, when he knows which side of a question is taken by each claimant of the floor, and their claim is not determined by the above principles, should give the preference to the one opposed to the last speaker. ”

“ Under the reign of Louis Philippe, in the best days of Guizot and Thiers, debates of the greatest interest took place at the Palais Bourbon in the “Chamber of Deputies,” as the French representative body was at that time called; for with each new government the name of the assembly, as of almost every other institution in France, is changed. All public establishments are from time to time Royal, National, or Imperial; and the body which corresponds in France to the House of Commons in England is called, turn by turn, Chamber of Representatives, Chamber of Deputies, or Legislative Body. ”

“ In large organizations, meeting weekly or monthly for one or two hours, it is the exception when a majority of the members is present at a meeting, and therefore it has been found necessary to require the presence of only a small percentage of the members to enable the assembly to act for the organization, or, in other words, to establish a small quorum. In legislative bodies in this country, which are composed of members paid for their services, it is determined by the constitutions to be -a majority of their members. ”

“ We sauntered into the Assembly Chamber, surveyed and learned all the particulars of that, peered into the side-rooms, closets, &c., and then came to the Senate Chamber. This you know is something finer than the country meeting house, or circus-looking Assembly Chamber, where the "fresh-men," or green members from Hard-Scrabble, Hull, Squantum, etc.,—incipient Demostheneses, and sucking Ciceros, first tap their gasometers "in the haouse." ”

“ During debate, and while the chairman is speaking, or the assembly is engaged in voting, no member is permitted to disturb the assembly by whispering, or walking across the floor, or in any other way. ”

“ The crowd stands steadfastly in the dirty slush that melts beneath their feet; they look into each other’s faces and then straight ahead again, and crane their necks. For beyond that portal, in the Council Room, in fourteen arm-chairs arranged in a semicircle sit the electors, who have been chosen from the Senate and the Assembly and await the proposals of the voting chambers. ”

“ A majority can permit a member to speak oftener or longer whenever it is desired, and the motion granting such permission cannot be debated. However, if greater freedom is wanted, it is only necessary to consider the question informally, or if the assembly is large, to go into committee of the whole. ”

“ Until late in the nineteenth century, the Lower Chamber was viewed as an assembly of the representatives of corporate groups, whether towns or counties, rather than as representing the common or ordinary people as a whole. ”

“ And Fourthly, a Committee of Manners, Education, and Arts, that all wicked and scandalous Living may be prevented, and that Youth may be successively trained up in Virtue and useful Knowledge and Arts: The Quorum of each of which Committees being six, that is, two out of each of the three Orders or yearly Elections, as aforesaid, make a constant and standing Council of Twenty-four, which will have the Power of the provincial Council, being the Quorum of it, in all Cases not excepted in the fifth Article ”

“ There are no “dockyard” members. Nothing need be said with a view to a general election. Nor can a member of the Upper Chamber be imagined making a speech, for the sake of speaking. It is not exactly an inviting atmosphere for such an undertaking. Imagine yourself standing up to address a huge and almost empty chamber, furnished with crimson benches, and tenanted by a smattering of elderly gentlemen all staring with polite fixity at their boots. ”

“ If the members of the assembly have been elected or appointed as members, it becomes necessary to know who are properly members of the assembly and entitled to vote, before the permanent organization is effected. In this case a temporary organization [5] is made, as already described, by the election of a chairman and secretary “pro tem.,” when the chairman announces, “The next business in order is the appointment of a committee on credentials.” A motion may then be made covering the entire case, thus: “I move that a committee of three on the credentials of members be appointed. ”

“ The presiding officer of an assembly will generally succeed best who makes it a rule never to appoint as chairman of a committee the person who made the motion, but such members, who from interest in the matter or from general ability, are best fitted to do its particular work. Then, if the mover of the motion be one of the committee, and the members do desire, they can upon their first calling together elect him chairman. ”

“ The Chairman: In the absence of a special rule, or of custom of the assembly of such length of standing as to acquire the force of law, when a question is laid on the table it goes to the table only until such time, sooner or later, as the assembly decides to take it from the table. The chair rules the point not well taken. The question before the assembly is on taking the resolution on civil service examinations from the table. Are you ready for the question? (Undebatable.) As many as favor taking the resolution from the table say aye. ”

“ This, to be sure, the authors of the two chamber systems had already had in mind, when they perceived the necessity of referring questions to committees and disentangling certain questions by special committees, even by committees of experts. To complete the assembly, so that all interests would be guarded and all points taken and all information of the condition of the realm made accessible, each class of people, from the highest to the lowest, should elect representatives in proportion partly to their numbers and partly to their importance for the advancement of the country as a whole. ”