WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 1963 (UPI) - President Kennedy's widow and children soon will be leaving the White House where every room is filled with poignant memories of him.
The Executive Mansion she made her special project and what once was home to Jacqueline Kennedy is now empty and forlorn for her.
She stayed there last night after the funeral of her husband. There were reports that shortly before midnight she visited once again the grave of the president on a grassy slope at Arlington National Cemetery, but this could not be confirmed though military police guarding the grave had been alerted to expect her.
Mrs. Kennedy may stay on at the White House for a few more days with Caroline and John Jr., who made it a wonderful place when their daddy was alive. She must gather up the family's belongings.
Only twice yesterday did her magnificent composure break. Once when she was given the flag that draped the coffin, carefully folded by the pallbearers, as she was leaving the graveside.
She shed tears again when she received the condolences of kings, prime ministers and other world leaders at the White House after the funeral. She also met privately with President Charles de Gaulle of France; Prince Philip of Britain; Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia and President Eamon de Valera of Ireland.
The world wept more openly. The funeral was a monument to dignity and in her widow's veil she walked with pride.
It was done with the ceremonial flare her husband loved so much...the muffled drums...the sound of bagpipes...and Taps that touched the heart.
It was John Jr.'s third birthday, but no one could celebrate. The little boy, instead, saluted the casket of his father when the military band played "Hail to the Chief" in mournful strains as the youngster emerged from St. Matthew's Cathedral with his mother and sister.
The tragedy that struck the first family is even more painful because it happens at a time of birthdays for the youngsters, the Thanksgiving holiday and the beginnings of the Christmas season.
Blonde blue-eyed Caroline will be 6 years old tomorrow. The first grader, who adored her father and knew he was the president, has cried many times over the past few days.
Thanksgiving always was a time for traditional gatherings of the big Kennedy clan at Cape Cod. Mrs. Kennedy may take her youngsters there to see the president's grieving father, former Ambassador Joseph P. Kennedy, who is ailing and could not attend the funeral.
She may also try to lift Caroline's spirits by taking her back to the family compound at Hyannis Port, Mass., to be with her young cousins.
A White House aide said Mrs. Kennedy wants to remain in the Washington area where she has spent most of her life. She has a New Hunt country home at Atoka, Va. That may be the spot where she will go to find peace and rest.