making power in England is divided into two branches; the House of Lords, answering to our Senate, and the House of Commons, quite analagous to our House of Representatives. Indeed it was quite natural for the framers of our government to imitate that of England. Anterior to the Revolution which separated us from England, our fathers had lived under its institutions and laws, many of which were good, and were subsequently incorporated with the new fabric. Whatever was incompatible with a Republican form of government, and that equality of rights which they determined to bestow upon every citizen, was rejected.

THE SENATE.

3. This branch of the National Legislature is constituted very differently from the House of Representatives. It is composed of two members from each State, without regard to the size or population thereof. New York, now the most populous State in the Union, has but two Senators in Congress, while the least populous State has the same number. They are not elected like the members of the lower House, by the people, but by the Legislatures of the respective States which they represent. They are also elected for a longer term than the members of the House of Representatives; a Senator is chosen for six years, while a Representative in the other House is elected for only two.

4. The word Senate is derived from the Latin word senatus, which signifies old; and older men are generally selected for the Senate than for the House of Representatives. Indeed the Constitution declares that a Senator shall be thirty years of age at the time of his

election, and that he must have been a citizen of the United States for nine years; whereas a member of the House is eligible at the age of twenty-five, if he has been a citizen seven years.

5. The Senate, like the House of Lords in England, is often styled the upper House; while the House of Representatives, for the sake of brevity, is generally styled "the House." The Senate is considered the higher and more dignified of the two, because men of age, talent, wisdom and experience are generally selected for this exalted position. Again, the Senate has powers which the House does not possess. When acting in their legislative capacity, both have equal powers, but the Senate, in connection with the President, has the power to ratify treaties. It alone confirms or rejects the President's nominations to offices, and also acts as a high court to try cases of impeachment. These important duties and prerogatives belong exclusively to the Senate without the concurrence of the House. bills, (the draft of all laws when presented to a legislative body for its approval or disapproval, are called bills, excepting those for raising revenue,) may originate either in the Senate or the House; yet much the larger number of bills do originate in the House, because it has about three times the number of members which the Senate has, and because the members of the House are more immediate representatives of the people than the Senators. A greater number of the people know them, and usually send their petitions and make their wants known to them-and from these wants of the people, laws originate.

All

6. When the Senate convenes for the purpose of considering the nominations made by the President for the various offices to which he has the right of appointment by and with their consent, it is called an executive session. A vote of approval by a majority, gives the consent of this body; not so, however, when they vote upon the ratification of a treaty; for in this case the Constitution requires an affirmative vote of two-thirds. of all present. A two-thirds vote is also necessary to give a judgment in case of the impeachment of any officer of the government who may be arraigned before them for trial.

The Vice President is the President of the Senate; but in case of a vacancy in this office, it then chooses a President from its own members. We next come to the

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

7. This is often styled "the lower House." It has equal power with the Senate in the enactment of all laws; for no bill can become a law unless it receives a majority of the votes of both Houses, and in one particular it has a power which the Senate does not possess: it has the sole power of impeachment. We have stated that the Senate has the power to try impeachments, but this it never does until the House has first impeached some officer of the government for an alleged crime, after which the Senate resolving itself into a court, tries the accused party, and determines his guilt or innocence. The part which the House takes in cases of impeachment is very analagous to the action of a grand jury, which does not try the accused party, but only says after examining the charges, upon what evidence

it has, that he or she ought to be tried in a court of law-so with the House. It declares that the accused party should have a trial before the Senate. This decision of the House is denominated an impeachment.

8. The members of the Senate, as above stated, are elected by the Legislatures of the respective States which they represent; but the members of the House are elected by the people, by popular vote, as it is commonly said-for any body in any State may vote for a member of the House of Representatives who has the right to vote at all. In the two chapters on Congressmen and Congressional Districts, more may be seen on the subject of electing members to the lower House. After a bill has passed one House, it must be sent to the other, where it is referred to a committee, reported, debated, and finally voted upon exactly as in the other House.

9. But bills for the purpose of raising revenue must originate in the House of Representatives, never in the Senate, although these bills, like all others, go to the Senate for its concurrence, where they may be amended by adding to or striking out such parts as are not approved. No money can be drawn out of the Treasury of the United States for any purpose whatever, unless authorized and appropriated by an act of Congress.

10. This is the order, and these the forms through which every bill must pass before it becomes a law, and they show the care taken to prevent bad laws from being enacted, and the wisdom of the framers of the Constitution, in dividing the legislative power of the government into two branches, to check any hasty and

inconsiderate legislation which might be pushed through one branch, by the cooler and more deliberate action of the other.

11. The House of Representatives has no President like the Senate. Its presiding officer is called "The Speaker." He is chosen by the votes of the members, at the beginning of each Congress, which lasts two years. Consequently he holds his office two years. The Clerk of the House is also elected by its members, as are all its minor officers.

12. Correctly speaking, both the members of the Senate and of the House, are members of Congress, but by custom, Representatives only are called Members of Congress, (abbreviated into M. C.,) and the members of the Senate, Senators.

As there are 37 States now, the Senate has 74 members, and by a law of 1863, the number of. Representatives was fixed at 241; but if a new State comes into the Union after an apportionment, her member or members may be added to the 241, and so continue until the next apportionment.

COMPENSATION.

13. Senators and members of the House of Representatives receive the same compensation, the amount of which has been increased three times. It had always been eight dollars per day, down to 1856, when it was increased to three thousand dollars per session. Then in 1866 it was again raised to five thousand dollars per session; and as there are always two sessions to every Congress, each member receives ten thousand dollars during his full term.