In all assemblies there is sure to be a difference of opinion among the members on the question before them, and said difference of opinion will lead to debate.
It is important for the welfare and orderly conduct of any assembly that its debates should be treated with liberality and that every member who has an opinion on the subject should be given the opportunity to freely express his views. It is the duty of the chairman to see that the question (if debatable) is fully and fairly discussed, and that such discussion is conducted with decorum. Experience, however, has shown the necessity of complying with certain rules governing debate, in order to confine the speakers within certain limits, and to protect the more timid members in their individual rights as members of the assembly.
After a question has been stated to the assembly by the presiding officer (if it is a debatable one), it is properly before the assembly for debate. If two or more rise to speak to it, and if the mover of the measure is one of them, the chair ought first, as a matter of courtesy, to recognize
