Si uno encuentra recursos de evaluación, [antes de haber evaluado la propiedad del deudor para el acreedor para el pago de la deuda], recursos de sustento, [en donde el esposo se encarga de alimentar a la hija de su esposa. Otra interpretación: (escritos en los que se afirma que la tierra del marido se venderá para alimentar a su esposa e hijas), escritos de rechazo, [en los que está escrito: "Ante nosotros, esta y esta mujer se negaron (a permanecer casados) esto y este hombre, "esto, en una instancia de un menor (huérfano) cuya madre y hermanos se casaron con ella, en cuyo caso ella no requiere una obtención], escritos de selección, [uno (litigante) eligiendo uno (juez) y el otro que elige uno, para juzgar su caso], y (cualquier escrito de) promulgación por parte de beth-din, los devuelve (a aquellos para quienes fueron escritos). Si encontró (facturas) en una chafisah [un pequeño bolsa de cuero], o en un dluskema [una bolsa de cuero donde los ancianos guardan sus artículos necesarios para no tener que buscarlos], o un paquete de billetes [tres o más, doblados juntos], o un paquete de billetes [acostado uno encima del otro, de longitud a longitud], los devuelve, [esto es algo que tiene un siman (un signo de identificación). El receptáculo es un siman, dice el dueño g: "En tal y tal receptáculo los coloqué". Del mismo modo, "paquete" y "paquete" son un siman.] ¿Y cuántos son un "paquete" de billetes? Tres atados juntos. R. Shimon b. Gamliel dice: Si uno tomó prestado de tres, se devuelven al deudor. [Si las tres facturas son de un deudor, que tomó prestado de tres hombres diferentes, el buscador las devuelve al deudor, las facturas definitivamente se le han caído. Porque si se hubieran caído de ellos (los acreedores), ¿quién los habría reunido en un solo lugar? Y esto, solo con facturas que han sido certificadas en beth-din. Pero con las facturas que no han sido certificadas, tememos que los tres acreedores las hayan llevado al escriba de beth-din para que se certifiquen y se cayeron de la mano del escriba. Pero no se debe temer que cayeron de la mano del escriba después de que él los certificó, ya que los hombres no dejan facturas certificadas en la mano del escriba.] Si tres de ellos se lo pidieron prestado, se lo devuelve al acreedor, [siendo Obvio que se cayeron de él. Y si todos fueron escritos por la mano de un escriba, tememos que se hayan caído de la mano del escriba y que el préstamo nunca se haya hecho, de modo que no se devuelvan.] Si encuentra una factura entre sus facturas, y él no conoce la naturaleza de la misma [es decir, si el deudor la depositó con él o con el acreedor, o si se pagó parcialmente y se le entregó para que actúe como intermediario], permanece [en su mano sin ser devuelto a ninguno de ellos] hasta que llegue Eliyahu. Si encuentra entre ellos (sus facturas) un recibo [escrito para una de sus facturas], hace lo que está (indicado) en el recibo, [y se supone que la factura ha sido pagada. Y aunque este recibo debería haber estado en la mano del deudor y no en la del acreedor, asumimos que el deudor confió en el acreedor y dijo: "Dámelo mañana", y se olvidó. (Esto, cuando el acreedor encontró la factura para la cual el recibo se escribió entre facturas rotas, aunque en sí no está rota)].
Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
אגרות שום – that the Jewish court estimated the [value of the] property of the borrower to the creditor in his loan document
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
If a man found letters of evaluation, or letters of sustenance, or documents of halitzah or refusal, or documents of arbitration or any document drawn out by the court he should return them. The documents listed in this section are all executed by a court. In such a case we need not fear that the court wrote the document and then did not fulfill what was stated in it, as we feared with regards to the documents mentioned in the previous mishnah. Therefore they can be returned to those named in the documents. A “letter of evaluation” is an evaluation of a person’s property should it need to be sold to pay off his debts. A “letter of sustenance” is permission given to a wife to sell her husband’s property should he not properly provide her with food (or other financial obligations). “Documents of halitzah” are documents that testify to a man’s having declared that he will not perform the levirate marriage (see Deuteronomy 25:5-10). “Documents of refusal” are documents that testify that a woman whose mother or brother (but not father) arranged her marriage when she was a minor refused the marriage when she became an adult. In such a case the woman does not need a regular divorce document, a get. “Documents of arbitration” are documents that state the litigants choices for judges.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
ואגרות מזון – that he accepted upon himself to feed the daughter of his wife. Another explanation: that they would sell from the landed property of the husband to support the wife and the daughters.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
If he found documents in a satchel or bag, or a bundle of documents he should return them. How many count as a bundle of documents? Three tied up together. If a person finds documents in an identifiable bag he should return them to the person who can identify the bag. In the upcoming chapter we will learn about identifying lost objects.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
ומיאונין – that they would write in the document: “In our presence, so-and-so has refused this particular gentleman as her husband.” And this is regarding when a minor whose mother and/or brothers married her off, she does not require a Jewish bill of divorce.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel says: [If one found three documents in which] one borrowed from three others, they should be returned to the borrower. But if [one found three documents in which] one loaned to three, they should be returned to the lender. A set of three documents found together and all containing one name, was in all likelihood lost by that named person. Therefore if three documents state that one person borrowed from three others, it is reasonable that they belonged to the borrower. If the three documents all contain the name of the same creditor who loaned to three different debtors, it is reasonable that the documents belonged to the creditor.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
שטרי בירורין – this one chooses one [judge] and the other party chooses one [judge] who will adjudicate for them.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
If a man found a document among his documents and he does not know what is its nature, it must be left until Elijah comes. If a person finds a document amongst his documents that contains the name of a creditor and a debtor, but he doesn’t know who gave him the document, and therefore he doesn’t know if it was paid off, he should hold the document until Elijah comes. In other words he shouldn’t get rid of the document but neither is he permitted to give it to either the creditor or the debtor.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
מצא – [he found] documents.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
If there were postscripts amongst them, he should do what is stated in the postscript. If he finds amongst his documents torn or unreadable documents which have with them postscripts which state what needs to be done with the document, he should do what is in the postscript, even though the document itself is torn or unreadable.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
בחפיסה – a small leather bag
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
Questions for Further Thought: Mishnah eight, section two: Why in this case is the finder supposed to return the lost documents? Why don’t we worry that they were lost by the writer who changed his mind after writing them and before giving them?
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
ודלוסקמא – a leather utensil/box that the elderly hide their utensils so that they don’t have to search after them.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
ותכריך של שטרות – three documents or more which are wrapped up one with the other.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
ואגודה – that are lying one on top of the other, the length of this one on the length of that one.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
הרי זה יחזיר – since it is something that has a sign; for the utensil is sign when the owners say, “in this particular utensil you found them.”
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
אחד הלוה משלשה – if there are three [loan] documents of one borrower who borrowed from three [different] people, the finder [of these lost documents] should be returned to the borrower, since they had surely fallen from his hand, for if they had fallen from their hands (i.e., the three lenders), who gathered them to one place? And specifically when the documents were authenticated by the Jewish court. But if they were not authenticated, we suspect that perhaps, in order to authenticate them, the three lenders brought them to the scribe of the judges and they fell from the hand of the scribe. And we should not suspect lest after they had been authenticated, they fell from the hand of the scribe, for a person does not delay their confirmation in the hand of the scribe. And if they (i.e., the loan documents) are from three [different] borrowers, who borrowed from one individual, the finder should return them to the lender for the matter is known that they fell from him. And if all three of them were in the writing of one scribe, we suspect lest they fell from the hand of the scribe and they were not [ever] loaned. And therefore, we do not return them.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
מצא שטר בין שטרותיו ואינו יודע מה טיבו – with him – if the borrower deposited it with him or the lender, or lest it was partially paid-off, and they delivered it to him to be the intermediary between them (i.e., the lender and the borrower).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
יהא מונח – in his hand, and he should not return it to either this one or the other one.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
ואם יש עמהן סמפון – [codicil]. The one who finds it amongst his documents a receipt that was written on one of his documents.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
יעשה מה שבסמפון – And the [loan] document was under the presumption of having been paid-off, and even though it would have been appropriate for this receipt to have been placed in the hand of the borrower and not in the hand of the lender/creditor, we say that the borrower trusted the lender and said: “tomorrow give it [the receipt] to me,” and he forgot. And this is the case of when a lender found this document upon which was written the receipt, between his torn documents even though it was not torn.
