Lady Bird's Last Hurrah

THE WHITE HOUSE

Standing in Dallas' Parkland Memorial Hospital on that unforgettable afternoon five years ago last week, Lady Bird Johnson, numb with sorrow and shock, turned to Mrs. John Connally and whispered: "Oh, Nellie, I feel that I am onstage for a part I never rehearsed." The First Lady learned her lines quickly. While her husband was al most constantly under fire, Lady Bird rarely became a target -- except, perhaps, for cracks about her babyhood nickname and her Texas drawl. When the John sons had the Nixons to lunch at the White House just after the election, Pat Nixon told Lady Bird: "I've been many places, and I've heard nothing but admiration for you." She added with a smile: "And I've been places where I might have heard otherwise."

Wherever those places are, Lady Bird has probably been there herself. Though she never gained the reputation that Eleanor Roosevelt had for popping up in unlikely spots, she has traveled some 200,000 miles at home and abroad in five years as First Lady. This week she is completing a final coast-to-coast trip covering 6,071 miles in 96 hours, taking her to New Orleans, Cape Kennedy and the California redwood forests. Before leaving, she welcomed 54 new U.S. citizens in the first naturalization ceremony ever held in the White House. The group ranged from an eight-year-old Filipino girl to a 72-year-old Chinese laundry worker. She told them warmly: "We need you all."

At Lady Bird's instance, the White House in the Johnson years was a casual home rather than a formal castle.

By the time they leave Washington, the Johnsons will have entertained 200 state visitors, more than any other Administration. A shrewd businesswoman, Mrs. Johnson also brought to such events a notable warmth. On one memorable occasion, her calm dignity soothed a White House women's gathering after Eartha Kitt delivered a bitter anti-Administration protest. Elaborate state dinners often wound up with the liveliest late-hour dancing in official memory. What with the engagements and weddings of Daughters Lynda Bird Robb and Luci Nugent, and then the birth of Grandchildren Lyn and Lucinda, the family quarters and public rooms have rarely had such a workout.

The First Lady will doubtless be best remembered for her wide-ranging efforts to beautify the U.S. While her anti-billboard campaign fizzled, her tree plantings and her continual calls for more parks and better playgrounds have made many Americans more thoughtful about the quality of their environment. Lyndon Johnson once complained, tongue in cheek: "Sometimes I'm interrupted in my nap by Lady Bird and Laurance Rockefeller and about 80 others in the next room talking about flowers and roadside picnic tables."

First of Many. In her travels as First Lady, Mrs. Johnson has aimed to "pull back the curtain" by publicizing little-known community programs for self-help and improvement around the U.S. Some think she did all that--and more.

Says Liz Carpenter, Lady Bird's longtime friend and press secretary: "She has made every woman feel that she too can do something for her community --and still be a conventional wife and mother. She got them up from the bridge tables." After her exit in January, Lady Bird may edit her White House diary into shape for publication as a book--a prospect that has publishers brandishing generous offers. When the Johnsons marked their 34th wedding anniversary last week, Lady Bird presented her husband with a copy of an entry from her diary dated Feb. 13, 1941: "Big day! ... Tonight I went to my first (will it be my last and only?) dinner at the White House." With it was a note: "Thank you for bringing me back." Once back, she left her mark not on the White House, as did Jacqueline Kennedy, but on the land beyond.

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