Stan Katz: Walter F. Murphy, a Hero of War, and of Scholarship
[Stan Katz directs the Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School.]
Adria and I traveled to Washington the night before last so that we could make it to the Administration Building of Arlington National Cemetery by 8:30 a.m. yesterday morning for the interment of the ashes of our friend Col. Walter F. Murphy, USMC ret. As any of you who have visited Arlington will recognize, the Cemetery is an awesome place, with its row upon row of identical white grave stones. We had visited a few years before for the interment of Walter's first wife, Terry—spouses of veterans are entitled to be buried with them. But Terry had not been a member of the armed forces, and we were not prepared for the stunning impact of a burial with full military honors....
As many readers will know, Prof. Walter Murphy was one of the leading constitutional scholars in the United States. He was one of the founders of the field of comparative constitutional law, and he was one of the leading experts in the field of constitutional interpretation. Walter was the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence for 37 years—and this is perhaps Princeton's most hallowed chair, previously held by Woodrow Wilson, Edward S. Corwin, and Alpheus Thomas Mason. Walter's course in Constitutional Interpretation was probably the best-known undergraduate course in our college, implicitly required of any student thinking about a career in law, or any student willing to subject himself to the most rigorous academic humanities challenge the college provided. He was a great scholar and teacher. And he was a particularly close friend and professional colleague of mine.
But of course that is not why he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Walter was a war hero. A genuine war hero. He joined the U.S. Marine Corps shortly after graduating from the University of Notre Dame, and shortly after completing basic training his unit was rushed to Korea....
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Adria and I traveled to Washington the night before last so that we could make it to the Administration Building of Arlington National Cemetery by 8:30 a.m. yesterday morning for the interment of the ashes of our friend Col. Walter F. Murphy, USMC ret. As any of you who have visited Arlington will recognize, the Cemetery is an awesome place, with its row upon row of identical white grave stones. We had visited a few years before for the interment of Walter's first wife, Terry—spouses of veterans are entitled to be buried with them. But Terry had not been a member of the armed forces, and we were not prepared for the stunning impact of a burial with full military honors....
As many readers will know, Prof. Walter Murphy was one of the leading constitutional scholars in the United States. He was one of the founders of the field of comparative constitutional law, and he was one of the leading experts in the field of constitutional interpretation. Walter was the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence for 37 years—and this is perhaps Princeton's most hallowed chair, previously held by Woodrow Wilson, Edward S. Corwin, and Alpheus Thomas Mason. Walter's course in Constitutional Interpretation was probably the best-known undergraduate course in our college, implicitly required of any student thinking about a career in law, or any student willing to subject himself to the most rigorous academic humanities challenge the college provided. He was a great scholar and teacher. And he was a particularly close friend and professional colleague of mine.
But of course that is not why he was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Walter was a war hero. A genuine war hero. He joined the U.S. Marine Corps shortly after graduating from the University of Notre Dame, and shortly after completing basic training his unit was rushed to Korea....