Dennis Francis Lyons 'O2, 1880-1937

A TRIBUTE BY THE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN RAILROADS TO HISDISTINGUISHED CAREER IN THE LAW

IN THE lamented death of Dennis Francis Lyons, General Counsel of the Northern Pacific Railway Com- pany, on June 12, 1937, the Association of American Railroads and the members of its Law Committee have sustained a great loss. They join with his beloved family and friends in heartfelt mourning.

Mr. Lyons was born in Danvers, Massachusetts, on February 15, 1880, the son of John and Bridget Maria Lyons. He was graduated from Dartmouth College with a distinguished scholarship record and with the degree of A.B. in 1902, and from the law school of the University of Minnesota with the degree of LL.B. in 1906. He was then admitted to the Minnesota Bar. After a period of teaching, public service and general practice, in all of which he displayed great ability, he joined the legal staff of the Northern Pacific Railway Company in 1911. His high character and professional and intellectual attainments won for him on July 1, 1925, the position of General Counsel of the Company, which he held with marked success until his death. He was ah honored citizen of his community and served a term as President of the Bar Association of his county. His Dartmouth classmates entrusted him with the responsibility and honor of acting as trustee of the class.

Mr. Lyons married Anna Gall of St. Paul on July 14, 1908. His wife and two children, Kathleen and William Hart, survive him. He was a devoted husband and wise and loving father. He was a faithful member of the Roman Catholic Church and one of its trusted advisors and counselors.

Mr. Lyons served as a valued member of the Law Committee from July 6, 1925, until the time of his death and won the love and admiration of his associates. His contribution to the success of the suits which adjudicated the unconstitutionality of the Railroad Retirement Acts of 1934 and 1935 was invaluable. It was made not only while he was administering other matters of great importance for his own Company but also at a time when the state of his health was .such that only by great personal sacrifice, extraordinary courage and intense fidelity could he continue to share the responsibility and burdensome work of these suits for the protection of the railroads of the nation.

"Denny" Lyons, as his intimates affectionately called him, was a real man, tolerant of the views of others but unyielding in matters of principle. His sense of humor, his keen wit, breadth of view, and scholarship made him a delightful companion. Frail as he was in later years, he never spared himself. He was always willing to take the laboring oar and to join in a fight to the finish.

It would be difficult to overstate the fine qualities of our friend. No member of the Law Committee has ever won more completely the affection and admiration of those with whom he was closely associated. He was outstanding in his ability as a lawyer but even more so in his exceptional charm and in his attractive and lovable personality as a man. He was loyal and true to the highest ideals of his religion and his profession. His never failing kindness, courtesy and consideration for others have left a lasting memorial in the hearts of his friends.

The members of this Committee extend sincere sympathy to those who must bear most heavily the burden of this separation. In affectionate memory of our associate and by the direction of the Law Committee of the Association of American Railroads, these resolutions are adopted and ordered spread upon the records of the Association and a copy sent to each member of the Law Committee and also to Mrs. Dennis F. Lyons, Miss Kathleen Lyons and Mr. William Hart Lyons.