Melville Fuller

“ The purchaser obtained an interest in the thing itself. The case here is wholly different, for these importers, after the decision of the secretary, paid the duties and took the goods themselves, and then attempted to assign a bare right of action to this plaintiff. ”

“ Section 3011 of the Revised Statutes, as amended by the act of congress of February 27, 1877, (19 St. pp. 240, 247,) provides:
'Any person who shall have made payment under protest, and in order to obtain possession of merchandise imported for him, to any collector, or person acting as collector, of any money as duties, when such amount of duties was not, or was not wholly, authorized by law, may maintain an action in the nature of an action at law, which shall be triable by jury, to ascertain the validity of such demand and payment of duties, and to recover back any excess so paid ”

“ The importers, as found by the court, 'for the purpose of getting possession of their said merchandise, paid the amount so required of them, but within the time required by law notified the collector of their dissatisfaction with, and protest against, his decision, and appealed to the secretary of the treasury, who affirmed the decision of the collector. ”