Wenn ein Baby neben einem Teighaufen gefunden wurde und ein Stück in seiner Hand war [und es ist unklar, ob er selbst das Stück abgenommen hat, um den ganzen Teig unrein zu machen, oder ob jemand anderes das Stück für ihn abgerissen hat], Rabbi Meir hält es für rein. Und die Weisen halten es für unrein, weil es die Art und Weise ist, wie Babys [den Teig] berühren. Teig mit Peck-Löchern von Hühnern und unreinen Flüssigkeiten im Haus. Wenn zwischen den Flüssigkeiten und den Broten genügend Platz ist, damit sie ihre Schnäbel auf dem Boden abwischen können, sind sie rein. Und in Bezug auf eine Kuh oder einen Hund genug Platz, damit sie [Zeit haben], [ihre Lippen mit] ihren Zungen zu lecken. Und bei allen anderen Tieren genug Platz, damit sie austrocknen können. Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov hält es im Fall eines Hundes für rein, da er intelligent ist und es nicht seine Art ist, das Futter zu verlassen und Wasser zu holen [zuerst, bevor er mit dem Essen fertig ist; und daher kann angenommen werden, dass er die Brote nach dem Berühren der unreinen Flüssigkeiten nicht berührt hat].
Bartenura on Mishnah Tahorot
תינוק שנמצא בצד עיסה – a ritually impure child that is found at the side of started dough and a piece of this started dough was in his hand.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Tahorot
A child was found next to dough with a piece of dough in his hand: Rabbi Meir says that the dough is clean; But the sages say that it is unclean, since it is the nature of a child to slap dough. A child can be assumed to have had contact with unclean things, such as a sheretz (a creepy crawly thing) or something else that was unclean (children play with yucky stuff). If a child is found playing next to some dough and he has some dough in his hands, we would think that it is nearly certain that the dough came from there. Nevertheless, Rabbi Meir rules leniently he says that it is possible that a pure person gave the dough to the kid. The other sages are not so lenient. They say that even if the child is not holding on to the dough, it is impure because children like to play with dough. Sort of like ancient play-doh!
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Bartenura on Mishnah Tahorot
ר' מאיר מטהר – Rabbi Meir according to his reasoning who took into consideration the minority (i.e., the possibility of the rarer cases) and held that the majority of small children slap the started dough, and perhaps he himself took the risen dough and defiled the started dough, but the minority [of young children] do not slap but perhaps a ritually pure person took it and gave it to him, this started dough remains in the presumption of ritual purity, for this minority is near to a presumption and the majority was impaired/weakened, and it was half-and-half and that is ritually pure regarding a young child who lacks the awareness/knowledge to be interrogated.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Tahorot
Dough that bears traces of hens’ pickings and there is unclean liquid in the same house: if there was distance enough between the liquid and the loaves for the hens to dry their mouths on the ground, the dough is clean. The rest of the mishnah deals with dough that bears traces of an animal having pecked or licked it. Near the dough there is some liquid. We need to now figure out how likely it is that the animal licked the liquid and then brought it over to the dough before the dough dried. If the marking was made by a hen, then the dough is pure if the liquid is far enough away such that the hen could have dried its mouth on the ground. Evidently, hens do this. Who knew?
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Bartenura on Mishnah Tahorot
וחכמים מטמאים – according to their rationale that they are not concerned about a minority, for most young children slap [the dough]. And the Halakha is according to the Sages.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Tahorot
And in the case of a cow or a dog, if there was distance enough for it to lick its tongue. If the mark was made by a dog or cow, then they must have had enough time for their tongue to dry out. Dogs and cows lick their lips this I knew.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Tahorot
נקירת – there are small incisions/pickings in the started dough on account of the hens that pecked in it.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Tahorot
And in the case of all other beasts, if there was distance enough for their tongue to dry. If it was made by any other animal, there must have been enough time for the liquid to dry off their mouths or tongues. In all of these cases, if the liquid can be assumed to have dried, the dough is pure.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Tahorot
שינגבו את פיהן בארץ – it is the manner of hens after they drank [water], they dry their mouths on the ground. Therefore, if there is land that forms a partition between the liquids to the loaves [of dough] in order that they can dry their mouths on it after they drank, the loaves [of dough] are ritually pure. But if not, they are impure, for they were defiled with impure liquids that were in the mouths of the hens. But even though that when the land forms a partition, we are doubtful if their mouths were dried or not, this is a doubtful defilement in a matter that there isn’t awareness/knowledge to be interrogated, and its doubt is [nevertheless deemed] ritually pure.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Tahorot
Rabbi Eliezer ben Jacob holds the dough to be clean in the case of a dog who is smart; for it is not its habit to leave food and go after the water. Rabbi Eliezer ben Jacob appreciates that dogs are not stupid. Since there are water and food in the area, the dog would not be foolish enough to go for the water and not the food. Therefore the dough remains pure.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Tahorot
שהוא פיקח – for it is not his manner to drink all the time that he finds food [to consume]. For he (i.e., Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov) says that whenever liquids are found but food is not always found. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov.
