R. Shimon b. Gamliel said: In my father's house they would give white clothing to a gentile washerman three days before Shabbath. [White clothing is difficult to wash and requires three days, and they took upon themselves the more stringent ruling of Beth Shammai. The halachah is not in accordance with Beth Shammai, but with Beth Hillel, who permit it "with the sun."] And they [Beth Shammai and Beth Hillel] are the same (in their ruling) that the beams of the olive press and the circles of the wine press are loaded. [The olives are loaded while it is yet day with the beams of the olive press. After the olives are crushed, heavy beams are loaded upon them and the oil flows from them of itself the entire Sabbath. Those (the weights) of the wine press are called "circles." They were thick boards in the form of a circle. In this, Beth Shammai concur with Beth Hillel. For even if it is done on the Sabbath, there is no sin-offering liability. For the beam is not placed upon the olives until they are first crushed in the mill. Likewise, with grapes. They are first trodden by foot, and even without the beam, the liquid is exuded of itself, albeit, not as readily as with the beam. For this reason it is not similar to (the labor of) threshing (dash)].
Bartenura on Mishnah Shabbat
כלי לבן – which is difficult to launder, it requires three days, and they are stringent upon themselves like the School of Shammai. But the Halakha is not according to Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel, but rather according to the School of Hillel that permits it with the sunlight.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Shabbat
Introduction
The first section of this mishnah is a continuation of the previous mishnayot. Here we learn that Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel’s house behaved like Bet Shamma and refrained from doing work on Friday if that work would continue onto Shabbat.
The second section begins to list things that may be done on Friday, even according to Bet Shammai.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Shabbat
ושוין – The School of Shammai and the School of Hillel, that they load the olives while it is still daylight on the beam of the building containing the tank [and all the implements for pressing olives], after they crush the olives, they load them on heaven beams and the liquid flows on its own throughout the Sabbath.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Shabbat
Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel said: My father’s house was accustomed to giving white clothing to a non-Jewish launderer three days before Shabbat. The custom of Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel’s house was that of Bet Shammai. In the Tosefta (a text from the same time period as the Mishnah) it is related that they would give colored laundry on Friday, because colored laundry is easier to clean than white laundry.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Shabbat
ועגולי הגת – these of the winepress are called weights (clay cylinders), in which there were thick planks made in a round mold, and in this the School of Shammai agrees with the School of Hillel, because if they were to work these on the Sabbath, there would be no liability of transgression, because they don’t place the beam on the olives until they first mill them with a millstone and similarly with grapes that they first tread on them with their feet, and without the beam the liquid would come forth on its own, but it would not come out well until now, therefore, it is not similar to threshing.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Shabbat
And these and these agree that they lay down an olive press beams and wine press rollers. Bet Shammai and Bet Hillel agree that one can begin the process of pressing olives and grapes on Friday, even though the work will continue on Shabbat. Since as soon as she lays down the beams, most of the good juices will come out and the grapes and olives are crushed, the continuation of such a process is not considered to be work forbidden by the Torah on Shabbat. Therefore, Bet Shammai allows this. Even on Shabbat, crushing already crushed grapes and already pressed olives is not considered to be work forbidden by the Torah, but rather only prohibited by rabbinic law derabbanan.
