upon the permission of Mr. Speaker, given either forthwith or, if he think fit, after notice thereof has been submitted to him in writing. To omit Standing Order 73, and insert the following in lieu thereof: — 73. Questions and the replies thereto are not to contain argument, nor are any facts to be stated beyond what are necessary to elucidate such Questions and replies. Proposed new Standing Order, to follow No. 76 :— 76a. If, in contravention of the preceding Order, any Member shall give more than one Notice at one and the same time, all such Notices, except the one first given, shall be placed at the foot of the list of Notices for the day for which they are given. Note.—lt sometimes happens that the rule laid down in Standing Order No. 76 is broken, it not being always possible at Notice-time to detect the fact that a member is reading more Notices than one. The proposed new Order will provide for the contingency. To amend Standing Order No. 92 so that it shall read as follows : — 92. A Question may be superseded: (1) By the adjournment of the House, either on the Motion of a Member " That this House do noio adjourn," or on notice being taken, and. it appearing, that a quorum is not present; (2) by a Motion "That the Orders of the Day be now read," which Motion, however, is restricted to clays on which Motions have precedence of Orders of the Day; (3) by the Previous Question carried in the negative form ; and (4) by Amendment. And to insert the following new Standing Orders, to follow No. 92: — 92a. The Previous Question, either in the Affirmative or Negative, viz., "■ That the Question be now put," or "That the Question bo not now put," may be moved upon any Question before the House, whether an Original Question or a proposed Amendment thereof, or upon both in succession. If the Previous Question in the Affirmative be carried, then the Amendment or Original Question, as the case may be, is to be put forthwith without any amendment or debate. If the Previous Question in the Negative be carried, then the Original Question (and the proposed Amendment thereof if any) drops, and can only be revived upon notice given for a future day. If the Previous Question moved in either form be negatived, then the debate will proceed upon the Question before the House; or the Previous Question in the alternative form may be proposed without any Motion or other procedure necessarily intervening. If the Previous Question in both | forms bo successively moved and lost, it j cannot bo moved again in either form upon the same Question until a future day. 92b. The Previous Question in the negative form cannot be moved upon a Motion of supersession or postponement, i.e., upon a Motion for the adjournment of the House (unless a substantive Motion), for the Adjournment of the Debate, or for the reading of the Orders of the Day, or upon a Motion for any stage of a Bill, for consideration of the Beport of any Committee, or for the postponement of any proceeding. 92c. When the Previous Question is moved, he Speaker or Chairman, if it shall appear to

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him that the subject has been adequately discussed, shall call upon Members supporting that motion to rise in their places, and, if ten or more Members shall so rise, then the Motion for the Previous Question shall be forthwith put without any amendment, debate, or adjournment, and unless ten or more Members shall so rise the motion for the Previous Question shall not be put. Note A. — The House of Commons has recently adopted the negative form of the Previous Question, because it is generally moved with the object of preventing the Original Question from being put. This obviates the anomaly of the mover and seconder of a Motion, "That the Question be now put," being appointed as tellers against that Motion. But it has the disadvantage that, if the Previous Question -in the negative be lost, then the Original Question has to be put without the House having affirmed that it should be so put. Obviously the better course would be to provide, as suggested, that the Previous Question may bo proposed either in the Affirmative or in the Negative, every possible contingency being provided for in the proposed new Standing Order. Note B. —It will be observed also that the above Stauding Orders would enable ten or more Members, with the concurrence of the Speaker or Chairman, to require the sense of the House to be taken at any time as to whether the Original Question should or should not bo forthwith put to the vote. To amend Standing Order No. 94 by omitting the words " and also the Previous Question." Note. —This is an alteration consequential upon the adoption of Nos. 92a, 92b, and 92c. To adopt the following new Standing Orders, to follow No. 94 : — 94a. No Motion for the adjournment of the House shall be made before the Questions have been disposed of. 94b. When brought forward as a substantive Motion at an interval in the proceedings, the adjournment of the House can only be moved either — (1.) For the purpose of terminating the sitting, in which case the Motion may prescribe the time to which the adjournment is to bo made, or (2.) Eor the purpose of discussing a definite matter, in which case the discussion must be kept closely to the definite point raised : Provided that when the Adjournment of the House is moved immediately after the Questions have been disposed of and before any other business has been entered upon, the subject-matter of any Question which has been put at that sitting, or of any reply which has been given thereto, may be debated upon such Motion for the Adjournment. 94c. When the adjournment of the House is moved during a proceeding, with a view to supersede the Question then before the House, the debate must be confined to the Question of adjournment. 94d. No Member who shall have moved or seconded a Motion for the Adjournment of the Debate or of the House, or for the Previous Question or Orders of the Day, during any debate shall be entitled to move or second any similar Motion during the same debate. 94e. If Mr. Speaker shall be of opinion that a Motion for the adjournment of a Debate, or of the House during any Debate, or (when the House is in Committee) if the Chairman is of opinion that a Motion that the Chairman do report progress or do leave the Chair, is an abuse of the Bules of the House, the

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