Choice of a Receivers of convening it, either by his own mouth, that of his chancellor, or some other appointed person.' Whereupon, the Commons at the king's command2 proceed to elect their Speaker, which, for dispatch of business, each house of parliament has. The Speaker of the House of Lords, whose office it is to preside there, and manage the formality of business, is the lord chancellor, or keeper of the king's great seal, or any other appointed by the king's commission: and, if none be so appointed, the House of Lords (it is said) may elect. The Speaker of the House of Commons is chosen by the House; but must be approved by the king, who though he cannot nominate may nevertheless recommend; nor is he, till confirmation, called Speaker. Being chosen, he is presented to the king in the House of Lords, and there, for form's sake, excuses himself." If approved, he prays, on behalf of the Commons, 1. Freedom of speech, and from arrest, and all their ancient privileges; 2. Pardon for mistakes, and candid construction of their proceedings,10 and that he may resort to the Commons for a declaration of their intent; 3. Access to the king.12 The House of Commons cannot assemble without their Speaker.13 So that, during his absence, whether from illness or any other cause, no business can be done, nor any question proposed, except a question of adjournment, and that question must be put by the clerk. Hence, when disabled from attending, he shall be discharged.15 The Speaker of the House of Commons cannot give his opinion or argue any question in the House (unless in a committee of the whole House); but the Speaker of the House of Lords, if a lord of parliament, may.16 11 14 Whilst the Commons are choosing their Speaker, four justices and two masters in Chancery are named by the lords to be receivers of such petititions for England, Ireland, Wales, and Scotland, as shall be delivered within six days ensuing. And in like manner three justices and two masters are named receivers of such petitions for 13 4 Inst. 8. 14 2 Hats. 222, 223. 16 1 Com. 181. Gascoign, Guien, Poitiers, Normandy, Anjou, &c. as shall be delivered within the same period. Then six temporal and two spiritual lords are appointed triers of the petitions of England, Ireland, Wales, and Scotland, and as many more for those of Gascoign and the other places, notwithstanding they are now lost to the Crown. These triers, or any four of them, assisted by the king's counsel, sit in the treasury chamber, and determine whether the petitions are proper to be proposed to the Lords.1 Session. After the Speaker chosen, and usually before a bill is The King's read, the Commons are summoned to attend the king in Speech. the House of Peers, to hear the king's speech; whereupon the Speaker proceeds to the Lords, followed by such members as choose to accompany him. The speech hav- Commenceing been delivered, the Speaker returns, the oaths (of ment of the which hereafter) are taken by the members, and usually a bill is read, before the speech is reported to the House, since from that time only does the session commence ;* though there are instances of reporting the speech without first reading a bill; and others again of delaying the report till the usual committees are appointed and orders made. The report being made, (from a copy prayed by 3 21 Oct. 1702. 5 16 Nov. 1699. 23 Oct. 1702; 29 Nov. 1710. 6 23 Oct. 1702. The question-whether it is of necessity, that at the meeting of the House after a prorogation, a bill should be read for the opening of the session, before the report of the king's speech, or before the House proceed on any other business, was very much agitated on the 15th of November 1763; when as soon as the members were sworn at the table, Mr. Wilkes, and Mr. Grenville, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, arose in their places, the first, to make a complaint of a breach of privilege, in having been imprisoned, &c. and Mr. Grenville, to communicate to the House a message from the king, which related to the privileges of the House; the Speaker at the same time acquainted the House, that the clerk had prepared a bill, and submitted it to them, whether, in point of form, the reading of the bill should not be the first proceeding towards opening the session. A very long debate ensued, which of these three matters ought to have the precedence, and at last it was carried in favour of the bill. Notwithstanding this decision, the custom of reading a bill immediately on the return from the House of Lords, is probably nothing more than a claim of right on the part of the Commons, that they are at liberty to proceed in the first place, upon any matter which they think material, without being limited to give a preference to the subjects contained in the king's speech. If this is so, the House might certainly have proceeded, and very regularly, either upon the king's message, or Mr. Wilkes's complaint, before they read the bill. And whoever (continues Mr. Hatsell) will examine the Journals accurately, will find several instances, where other business has been done before the bill is read. The reading of the bill is "for form's sake," and may be suspended till after other matters, if the House shall think the consideration of those matters of greater importance. (2 Hats. 82, 83.) In the House of Lords, however, it seems settled by one of their standing orders, "that at the beginning of the session, after prayers said, some bill, pro formâ, is to be read; then his Majesty's speech is to be reported; and then the committee of privileges is to be appointed." (2 Hats. 83. n) F Report of the Address of thanks. Committee of supply. the Speaker1) the House commonly votes thanks for the Amongst these, thus appointed at the commencement of every session, there are two committees (of the whole House) which demand a particular notice; one the committee of supply-for considering of the quantum of the supply granted to the Crown for the purposes of the state; the other, the committee of ways and means to find out ways and means for raising that supply. The committee of supply is a committee of the whole House, appointed by the House, in consequence of the order of the 18th February, 1167, to consider of the supply granted to his Majesty by a former vote or determination of the House. As it takes its origin from the aids which are demanded by the Crown, it can properly have no cognizance of any matters but such as are laid before the House of Commons, by the direction of the Crown, for the public service; and therefore if at any time it is thought expedient or desirable to vote a sum of money in the committee of supply, which is not intended for the service of the army or navy, or ordnance, or any other aid demanded by the Crown, the House must, in order to entitle the committee to take this matter into their consideration, enable them so to do by particular instruction. And here again the House have imposed another restraint upon themselves in the exercise of their privilege-the sole right of granting away the money of their fellowsubjects; for by a resolution of the 11th Dec. 1706, which, upon the 11th June, 1713, was declared to be a standing order, the House resolved, that they would receive on petition for any sum of money relating to public service, but what is recommended from the Crown. And the uniform practice of the House has applied this order, not only to petitions for public money, or for money relating to public service, but to all motions whatever for grants of money, whether the grounds of such applications have been public or private. Upon this principle, before the committee of supply can take into their consideration the providing for the pay and clothing of the militia, or even before the House can give the committee a power to consider of this service, some member of the House of Commons, authorized by the Crown, must acquaint the House that the king recommends the same to their consideration. It arises out of the nature and appointment of this committee, which is "to consider of the supply granted to his Majesty," that the form of all its resolutions, though they are for mere private purposes, is by way of grant to the Crown, to be applied by the Crown to the ends specified in the resolution.1 The object of the committee of ways and means is, as Committee of is expressed in the title of it, to find out modes of raising ways and the supply which the House (upon resolutions reported means. from the committee of supply, and agreed to) have granted to his Majesty: and the first consideration attending this proceeding is, that the money proposed to be raised upon the subject by loans or taxes, or any other mode, should not exceed the sum already granted in the committee of supply. It is, for this reason, incumbent upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer, or whatever member of the House of Commons proposes the ways and means for raising money for the service of the current year, to explain and show to the House, by a detail of the sums granted for the several services, that the amount of those sums will be a sufficient justification, in point of quantity, to the committee of ways and means, to adopt such measures, and impose such taxes, as shall be then recommended to them.2 The committee of ways and means, being specially appointed for considering such propositions only as may raise the supply granted in the current session of parliament, ought not, nor can properly take any other matters into their consideration, without particular powers given them for that purpose by instruction from the House. And therefore where it is found necessary to impose taxes 93 Hats. 196, 197. 13 Hats. 193-196. 2 Appropriation hill. or to charge duties, which are not to be applied towards the service of the year, this, if done in the committee of ways and means, must be done by special authority from the House; but it may as well be done, and indeed, with more propriety, in any other committee of the whole House, appointed for that particular purpose.' Should the committee close without directing the chairman to ask leave to sit again; and it is afterwards found necessary to vote a farther sum; the same form, by speech or message from the king, and proceedings thereupon, are observed in opening the committee of supply again, as at the beginning of a session. And where the committee drops, from the chairman neglecting to ask leave to sit again, or, from an adjournment for want of forty members, it may be revived by special order. 3 When the committees of supply and ways and means are closed, the House of Commons pass a bill, in which the several grants that have been made in the committee of ways and means, by land-tax, malt-tax, loan, sinking fund, &c. are recapitulated, and directed to be applied to those services which have been voted in that session in the committee of supply; specifying the particular sums granted for each service, and appropriating the money that shall be paid into the Exchequer for their discharge; and directing that the said supplies shall not be applied to any other than the purposes mentioned in the said act.5 The sums voted for the different heads, upon account of the army, ordnance, militia, foreign subsidies, and other particular services, are in the bill of appropriation separately and specifically applied to those services for which they are granted. But in the instance of the supply granted towards the navy, the practice has been different. In this service all the different grants upon the head of wages, victualling, ordnance, ordinary and extraordinary, are, in the appropriating bill, added together, and the whole sum, arising out of all these separate grants, is appropriated generally for the navy service. This distinction in the form of proceeding between the navy and all the other public services, has arisen from necessity, and the impossibility that there appears to be, from the nature of the sea service, to confine the expenditure of |