■ _ —UPI Telephoto
THE CASKET of ihe late President John F. Kennedy is lowered from a plane at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., as Mrs.
Kennedy and Atty. Gen. Robert Kennedy look on. . __ ,
VOL. 64, No. 43
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THE UNIVERSITY'S flag
stands at half mast at the
news of the President's
death.
PRESIDENT
SSASSINATE
Campus Reacts with Shock
To Kennedy's Assassination
Reactions of the administration, faculty and students to President Kennedy’s assassination ranged from shock and disbelief to discussion
of former Vice President Johnson’s capabilities as chief executive.
No one displayed concern for the'fate of Texas Gov. John Connally.
President Eric A. Walker said, “We are all stunned by the assassination of President Kennedy and there is nothing that can be said to
lessen the shock and sadness we feel.”
R. Wallace Brewster, professor of political science said, It will take us Americans and our friends all over the world a long time to
adjust to the cold fact that he
is no longer at the helm.”
M. Nelson McGeary, assistant
to President Walker, said . .
a tremendous loss to the nation
. . . we can merely hope and
pray that President Johnson!
can receive the cooperation
needed to carry us on.”
Solemn Groups
Meanwhile, students all over
campus stood in nervous, sol
emn groups, commenting on
the tragedy of the event. In the
Hetzel Union Building the juke
box was still. About 15 or 20
students were seen clustered
about' a transistor radio near
the lowered flag of Old Main.
"I am deply sorry as 1 am
sure the whole student body
is . . . This is certainly a sad
day for our nation and the
world” commented George
Jackson, president of the Un
dergraduate Student Govern
ment. Senior Class President
Ralph Wise said, . . this will
be felt throughout the country
and the world. It’s tragic.”
Paul McPherson, chairman of
the Young Republican Club
said “I would like to express
our grief . . . and extend our
sympathies to his (Kennedy’s)
family . ..” Vicki Caplan, pres
ident of the Association of Wo
men Students, commented that
she was ‘‘extremely upset ”
First Reaction
The first reaction of many
students was one of disbelief.
“We’d all been joking about it
because we couldn’t believe it
was true," Robert Kok (4th
secondary. education - Blairs
ville commented.' “I can’t be
lieve it could happen in a coun
try like this,” Judith Rost (sth
elementary education-Teaneck,
N.J.) said.
Almost everyone expressed
shock and despair. Voices were
hushed; comments were simple
and direct.
“It’s a hell of a thing,” James
(Continued on page four)
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA., SATURDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 23, 1963
-UPI Telephoto
VICE PRESIDENT LYNDON B. JOHNSON is sworn in as President of the United Stales by Federal District Judge Sarah
T. Hughes. His wife Lady Bird (left) and Mrs. John F. Kennedy are present.
FOR A BETTER PENN STATE
i DALLAS (AP) A hidden gunman assassinated President
Kennedy with a high-powered rifle yesterday.
Three shots reverberated. Blood sprang from the President’s
face. He fell face downward in the back seat of his car. His
wife clutched his head and tried to lift it, crying, “Oh, No!”.
Half an hour later, John F. Kennedy was dead and the
United States had a new president, Lyndon B. Johnson.
Within the hour, police had arrested a 24-year-old man
following the killing of a Dallas policeman. Homicide Capt.
Will Fritz said last night witnesses had identified the man as
slayer of the policeman. But Fritz said it had not been estab
lished that the man killed the President.
Suspect Named
He is Harvey Lee Oswald of Fort Worth, who four years
ago said he was applying for Russian citizenship. He has a
Russian wife.
Oswald denied that he had shot anybody.
The assassination occurred just as the President’s motor
cade was leaving downtown Dallas at the end of a triumphal
tour through the city’s streets.
His special car—with the protective bubble down—was
moving down an incline into an underpass that leads to a
freeway route to the Dallas Trade Mart, where he was to
Witnesses heard three shots. Two hit the President, one in
the head and one in the neck.
The third shot wounded Gov. John B. Connally o' Texas
in the side but his condition was reported not critical.
As the gunfire rang in the street, a reporter in the caravan
screamed, “My God, they’re shooting at the President!”
The motorcade slowed and then sped forward at breakneck
speed to Parkland Hospital near the Trade Mart.
Onlookers, terrified at the sight and sound of the assassi
nation, dived face forward for protection onto a grassy park
at the entrance of the underpass, fearing more shots. Police
swarmed into the scene.
At the hospital emergency entrance, AP reporter Jack
Bell saw the President stretched out face down at full length,
motionless on the back seat of the car. His suit still looked
neat—but there was blood on the floor.
The shots were fired at 12:30 p.m. and the President died at
1 p.m. He was 46 and the youngest'man ever elected president.
- -Automatically;"-the-mantle of “the presidency .fell to Vice
fflalbgiatt
Motionless
President Lyndon B. Johnson, a native Texan who had been
riding two cars behind the chief executive.
Johnson was sworn in as President of the United States
at about 2:39 p.m. CST. He took the oath of office aboard the
presidential plane at Dallas’ Love Field.
The Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation
and Dallas police swung into action within seconds after the
shooting and launched what was perhaps the biggest, deter
mined manhunt in the nation’s history.
Oswald was arrested in a theatre four miles from the
assassination site. He fled to the theatre after killing Dallas
policeman J. D. Tippet, who stopped him on a street, police
said.
The suspect admitted owning the pistol \vhich killed Tippet
but denied under intense questioning that he had any part in
the assassination.
Police said other employees of the building' from which
the shooting occured confirmed that Oswald was seen in .the
building at the time. . ■
Funeral arrangements for Kennedy, whose body was flown
to Washington yesterday in the plane which carried the hew
President, were announced by the White House last night.
Today, the body will be placed on view in the White
House for members of the family and government officials.
Kennedy’s body will be taken to the Capitol tomorrow,
where it will be placed in the Rotunda for a public viewing.
The funeral will be held at St. Matthews Cathedral in
Washington where a high mass will be celebrated at noon,
and the body will be interred Monday afternoon in Brookline,
Mass.
President Kennedy was riding in the lead car of what
had been a triumphal motorcade when he was shot through
the head and neck. In the same fusillade of shots, at about
12:30 p.m. CST, Gov. Connally was struck with three bullets
—one each in the right arm, right' leg and back.
(Continued on page four)
State, Pitt Cancel
Game; Classes
To Meet Today
President Eric A. Walker and University of Pitts
burgh Chancellor Edward Litchfield announced last
night that the football game scheduled for today be
tween the two schools has been canceled “out of respect”
for President John F. Kennedy.'
FIVE CENTS
A sellout crowd of 57,000 was expected to watch the
contest, which has been
rescheduled for Saturday,
Dec. 7, in Pittsburgh.
Penn State will have an
open date next week but Pitt
will meet the Miami Hurri
canes.
President Kennedy’s assassi
nation will have no effect on the
schedule of today’s classes, ex
cept that those of the Depart
ment of Speech have been dis
missed.
There were no other official
cancellations among the 32 de
partments contacted yesterday
afternoon. ,
Dixon Johnson, director of the
University public information de
partment, said the University
will probably follow whatever
policy President Lyndon B. John
son sets up regarding a nation
al day of mourning.
Several of the college deans
and department heads said until
President Eric A. Walker makes
a declaration of University poli
cy, all classes and functions will
proceed as usual.
The Hetzel Union Social Com
mittee announced the cancella
tion of Nickelodeon Night as a
result of the President's death.
Commonwealth Campuses
A spot check of the Univer
sity’s 14 Commonwealth cam
puses yesterday indicated a pat
tern of cancellations of social
events following the news of
President Kennedy’s death.
None of the four campuses
contacted, however, said classes
will be canceled officially today.
Jay L. Chronister, dean of
student affairs at McKeesport!
campus,* said the news of the
President’s death "has put a
damper on the Pitt game.”
McKeesport students canceled
a bonfire and pep rally, sched
uled for last night, in support of
the Nittany Lions. '
Mil Ball Canceled
Kenneth M. Bailey, dean of
student affairs at the Ogontz
campus, said that campus’ mili
tary ball set for tonight, has been
canceled.
“It has not yet been decided
whether or when the military
ball will be rescheduled,” Bailey
said.
An Ogontz facility meeting last
night was also canceled.
• No classes at Ogontz were can
celed on an official ba?’'j yes
terday although individual pro
fessors did cancel their classes.
“Classes will be held tomorrow
(today) in the view that the busi
ness of the nation must be car
ried forward,” Bailey said. 1
(Continued, on page jour)
Oswald Arrested
U.S., World
Mourn with
First Family
From the Wire Services
Reactions to the President’s
death yesterday in the imme
diate family and from' leaders
all over the world took the
form of shock and sorrow.
A stunned Senate adjourned
until noon Monday after a
prayer by its chaplain. The
House was not in session.
The President’s younger
brother, Sen. Edward M. (Ted)
Kennedy, D-Mass., was presid
ing over the Senate when he
received word of the shooting.
Atty. Gen. Robert F. Ken
nedy, the President’s other
brother and closest adviser,
was having lunch at home
when word of his brother’s
shooting reached him. He met
his sister-in-law, Jacqueline
Kennedy, at the airport when
she arrived from Dallas.
Edward Kennedy has flown
to Boston with his sister Eu
nice Shriver, to comfort their
parents.
Speaker of the House John
McCormack, who is now sec
ond in line to the Presidency,
remarked: “It is a staggering
loss.”
Around the World
From Soviet Premier Khrush
chev came an immediate ex
pression of sympathy to Mrs.
Kennedy; he is sending an
official message to the people
of the United States.
French President Charles De
Gaulle also expressed his sor
row, as did British Prime Min
ister Sir Alec Douglas-Home
in private messages to the Ken
nedy family.
President De Gaulle said,
“President Kennedy will nev
er be forgotten,” and pledged
the friendship and support of
the French people to President
Johnson.
West German Chancellor
Ludwig Erhard, who was to
come to Washington tomorrow
to confer with Resident Ken
nedy, immediately canceled
his travel plans, but later said
he hoped to attend the funeral.
In West Berlin, over 25,000
Germans staged a mass torch
light parade in memory of the
President.
In most of the European
capitals, radio and television
broadcasts were interrupted
(Continued on page three)