10 THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.

any member require the translation of any such
petition into either language, the same shall be
done by an authorised translator, under the
direction of the clerk of the House.
7. Every petition shall be signed by the
petitioners themselves, except in cases of inca-
pacity by illness.
8. No letters, affidavits, or other documents,
shall be attached to any petition, except in the
case of private bills, as hereinafter mentioned.
9. No petition shall make reference either to
any debate in the House, or to any intended
motion.
10. No petition shall pray directly for a
grant of public money.
11. A member presenting a petition to the
House, not being a petition for a private bill,
or relating to a private bill before the House,
shall confine himself to a statement of the des-
cription and number of the petitioners, and of
the material allegations contained in the petit-
ion, and to the reading of the prayer thereof.
It shall be open to any member to move "that
the petition be read." The only other question
which shall be entertained by the House, on
the presentation of any petition, shall be, "that
the petition be received."
12. In case of such petition complaining of
some present grievance for which there may
be an urgent necessity for providing an imme-
diate remedy, the matter contained in such
petition may be brought into discussion on
the presentation thereof.
13. The Clerk of the House shall weekly
prepare, in a tabular form, an abstract of all
petitions received by the House, in which shall
be set forth the place or places from whence
they were severally presented, the number of
signatures attached to each, the name of the
member presenting the same, the day on which
presented, and a short abstract of the prayer
thereof.
14. All petitions shall be received only as
the petitions of the parties signing the same.
15. Petitions from persons of the Native race
may be received without regard to the fore-
going forms.

PATENTS.
Ordinary Notice of a Petition for a Patent
must be given in at least one newspaper in each
Province.

PRIVATE BILLS.
DEFINITION.
Every Bill for the particular interest or
benefit of any person or persons, is treated in
Parliament, as a Private Bill. Whether it be
for the interest of an individual, a public com-
pany or corporation, a parish, a city, a county,
or other locality; it is equally distinguished
from a measure of public policy, in which the
whole community are interested. And this
distinction is marked by the solicitation of
Private Bills by the parties themselves whose
interests are concerned.

STANDING ORDERS AS TO
PRIVATE BILLS.

1. Every Private Bill shall be solicited by a
   "Private Bill Agent."
2. No person shall act as such agent till he
   shall have enrolled his name and place of abode
   with the Clerk of the House of Representa-
   tives, in a book to be kept for that purpose,
   and shall have signed a declaration to observe
   and obey all rules of the House, and pay all
   fees and charges when demanded.
3. No Member of either House of the General
   Assembly (either in person or by partner), and
   no servant of either House, shall be permitted
   to act as Private Bill Agent.
4. Any agent acting contrary to the rules of
   the House, disobeying the orders of Mr.
   Speaker, or of the Chairman of any Commit-
   tee, or neglecting or refusing to pay any fees
   due in respect of any Bill or other proceeding
   solicited by him, may be prohibited from prac-
   tising by order of Mr. Speaker.
5. All proceedings in the Clerk's Office
   connected with any private Bills shall be con-
   ducted by the Private Bill Agent in charge of
   such Bills; but all proceedings in the House
   shall be conducted by some Member thereof,
   selected by such Agent, and who shall be in
   charge of the Bill. The agent shall attend the
   Special Committee on the Bill, and, either in
   person or by Counsel, conduct the case, by the
   production of evidence, argument, or otherwise,
   as may be necessary.
6. The proceedings on Private Bills in the
   House shall be taken at some hour to be fixed
   by Mr. Speaker, and shall not be allowed to
   interfere with the progress of the public busi-
   ness of the House. The House shall not be
   counted out during the proceedings on any
   Private Bill, if seven Members, exclusive of
   Mr. Speaker, shall be present.
7. No Private Bill shall be brought into this
   House except upon petition first presented with
   a printed copy of the proposed Bill annexed,
   and such petition shall be signed by one or
   more of the parties applying for the Bill.
8. All petitions for Private Bills shall be
   presented to the House within thirty days from
   the commencement of the session.
9. Every petition for a Private Bill shall
   commence by setting forth that, within three
   months previously to its presentation to the
   House, public notice of the intention to apply
   for the Bill has been given once a week for
   four consecutive weeks in one or more papers
   within the Province to which it applies, and
   once at least in the General Government
   Gazette, and shall also contain a true statement
   of the general object of the Bill; and the pro-
   duction of such Gazette and newspaper or news-
   papers shall be sufficient proof of such notice.
10. Ordinary notice of a Petition for a
    Patent must be given in at least one newspaper
    in each Province.
11. When the petition shall have been
    received, and the requisite notice proved, notice
    of motion for leave to bring in the Bill shall be
    given, as in the case of Public Bills.