Rousing Farewell

Now will Muriel take over?

Bundled in parkas and ski masks, mittens and scarves, the people of Hubert Humphrey's adopted state paid him their final tributes last week. Not even subzero cold could keep them away as they waited patiently on the steps of Minnesota's capitol rotunda in St. Paul for a view of Humphrey's flag-draped casket inside. Among the mourners: a newsboy with his paper bag still slung over his shoulder and a visitor, California's Governor Jerry Brown.

Humphrey never achieved his goal of becoming President, but in the nation's capital as well as in the heartland, he was honored as if he had. Not only was his body flown to Washington on the plane that had carried the bodies of John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, but it also lay in state beneath the dome of the Capitol Rotunda on the same bier that had held Abraham Lincoln and J.F.K.

Only a week before he died, Humphrey told a friend that he did not want his requiem to be a morose spectacle. Said he: "Let's make it a celebration." It was certainly that--a rousing encomium to Hubert Humphrey.

At the funeral service in St. Paul's House of Hope Presbyterian Church, a black Baptist choir mourned Humphrey's passing with stirring spirituals, and the church choir sang the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's Messiah. There were eulogies by President Carter and Vice President Mondale. The service lasted more than two hours. Said Pastor Calvin Didier, a Humphrey friend: "The only service we ever had here that ran as long as this one was when Hubert was the preacher." Afterward Muriel, in a pink dress and fur jacket, stood in the cold greeting guests, including Coretta King, whom she embraced. While the honor guard lifted the casket and moved it to a waiting hearse, she wiped away some tears, then smiled and waved to friends in the crowd. At sundown Humphrey was buried in Minneapolis' Lakewood Cemetery as television spotlights eerily illuminated his final resting place. A 19-gun salute rang through the frigid air, a bugler played taps, cameras clicked.

And politics went on. Who will fill out the remaining four years of Humphrey's term? Three Minnesota Congressmen--Democrats Donald Fraser and James Oberstar and Republican Bill Frenzel--are gearing up for a special election to be held in November, concurrent with the general election. But Governor Rudy Perpich must appoint a successor to serve between now and November.

The guessing is that Perpich will name Muriel Humphrey and she will accept.

But not for political reasons. Muriel was never a fan of Washington and not particularly fond of politics. But close friends say that on his deathbed Humphrey asked her to accept the post; moreover, Muriel feels indebted to her husband's loyal staff. By going to Washington, she would guarantee their jobs for eleven more months and give them time to look for other work. Hubert would have approved.

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