In Bogle v. Magone, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on a dispute involving customs duties. The plaintiff, Bogle, imported iron from Canada into New York and was charged with a duty under the Tariff Act of 1883 by defendant Magone, who served as collector of customs in New York City at that time. However, Bogle argued that according to an act passed in 1872 which repealed all duties on such imports from countries sharing borders with the United States (like Canada), he should not be subjected to these charges. The court sided with Magone stating that while it is true there was an act repealing import taxes for bordering nations in 1872; this law had been superseded by subsequent legislation including the Tariff Act of 1883 which reinstated those duties. Therefore, they concluded that since no specific provision existed within later laws preserving any part of the earlier one exempting certain goods from taxation based on their country origin or geographical proximity to America's borders; its general repeal must stand as complete and absolute.

In the dissenting opinion for Bogle v. Magone, Justice Brewer argued that the majority's interpretation of the tariff law was incorrect. He believed that Congress intended to tax only those goods which were in a condition ready for sale or use by consumers when they arrived at American ports. In his view, raw sugar should not be taxed because it required further processing before it could be sold or used by consumers. Furthermore, he disagreed with the majority's assertion that any ambiguity in a statute should be resolved in favor of taxation; instead, he contended that ambiguities should be interpreted as leniently as possible towards taxpayers and against government power to tax.