The Mason v. Pewabic Mining Company case in 1893 revolved around a dispute over mining rights and property boundaries. The plaintiff, Mason, claimed that the defendant, Pewabic Mining Company had trespassed on his land to extract copper ore without permission or compensation. He sought damages for this alleged trespassing and extraction of valuable resources from his property. However, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the defendant based on evidence showing that they owned mineral rights under an old English common law principle known as "ad coelum doctrine". This doctrine states that whoever owns a piece of land also owns everything above and below it up to heaven (coelum) and down to hell respectively - including any minerals found beneath it. Therefore, since Pewabic Mining Company legally purchased their neighboring plot which was originally part of one large tract before being divided into smaller parcels by previous owners; they were entitled to mine underneath all parts within its vertical boundaries even if some areas extended under Mason's adjacent lot.

In the dissenting opinion for Mason v. Pewabic Mining Company, it was argued that the majority's decision failed to properly apply Michigan law regarding mining leases. The dissent believed that under state law, a lessee who extracts minerals from leased land is required to pay rent based on the value of those minerals at the time they are mined and brought to surface, not when they are sold or used by the lessee. They contended that this interpretation better aligns with common practices in mining operations where ore is often stored for long periods before being sold or used due to fluctuations in market prices. Therefore, tying rental payments solely to sales would unfairly disadvantage lessors as their compensation could be delayed indefinitely if a lessee chose not sell or use extracted ores immediately after mining them.