CAPITOL GOODBYE

Thousands Send Off Kennedy

Casket journeyed to final resting place.

Thousands of mourners lined the Mall and gathered on the steps at the foot of the Capitol to say farewell to Sen. Edward Kennedy, whose hearse made its final journey to Arlington Cemetary, where his brothers are buried. The crowd sang "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" in an impromptu moment, and burst into applause when Kennedy's hearse arrived. Kennedy's widow, Victoria, and other family members greeted some of the well-wishers, who included the longest-serving senator, 91-year-old Robert Byrd, among other prominent politicians. The motorcade traced the same route traveled during the funerals of John and Bobby Kennedy. The senator's grave is within a few hundred feet of his brothers'. Several hundred former and current staff members waved American flags to celebrate their old boss. At Kennedy's funeral, President Obama praised Kennedy as "a champion for those who had none; the soul of the Democratic Party; and the lion of the U.S. Senate."