Translation:Talmud/Seder Nezikin/Tractate Bava Metzia/2a

Mishnah

TWO [PERSONS APPEARING BEFORE A COURT] HOLD A GARMENT.1 ONE OF THEM SAYS, ‘I FOUND IT’, AND THE OTHER SAYS, ‘I FOUND IT’; ONE OF THEM SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, AND THE OTHER SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, THEN THE ONE SHALL SWEAR THAT HIS SHARE IN IT IS NOT LESS THAN HALF, AND THE OTHER SHALL SWEAR THAT HIS SHARE IN IT IS NOT LESS THAN HALF, AND [THE VALUE OF THE GARMENT] SHALL THEN BE DIVIDED BETWEEN THEM. IF ONE SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, AND THE OTHER SAYS, ‘HALF OF IT IS MINE’, HE WHO SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’ SHALL SWEAR THAT HIS SHARE IN IT IS NOT LESS THAN THREE QUARTERS, AND HE WHO SAYS, ‘HALF OF IT IS MINE’ SHALL SWEAR THAT HIS SHARE IN IT IS NOT LESS THAN A QUARTER. THE FORMER THEN RECEIVES THREE QUARTERS [OF THE VALUE OF THE GARMENT] AND THE LATTER RECEIVES ONE QUARTER. IF TWO RIDE ON AN ANIMAL, OR ONE RIDES AND THE OTHER LEADS IT, AND ONE OF THEM SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, AND THE OTHER SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, THEN THE ONE SHALL SWEAR THAT HIS SHARE IN IT IS NOT LESS THAN HALF, AND THE OTHER SHALL SWEAR THAT HIS SHARE IN IT IS NOT LESS THAN HALF, AND [THE VALUE OF THE ANIMAL] SHALL THEN BE DIVIDED BETWEEN THEM. IF BOTH ADMIT [EACH OTHER'S CLAIMS] OR IF THEY HAVE WITNESSES [TO ESTABLISH THEIR CLAIMS] THEY RECEIVE THEIR SHARES WITHOUT AN OATH.

Gemarah

What need is there [for the Mishnah] to [give two pleas of the litigants and] state: ONE OF THEM SAYS, ‘I FOUND IT’, AND THE OTHER SAYS, ‘I FOUND IT’, ONE OF THEM SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, AND THE OTHER SAYS, ‘IT IS ALL MINE’? Surely one plea would have been sufficient! — It is only one plea: One says ‘I found it and [therefore] it is all mine’, and the other says ‘I found it, and [therefore] it is all mine’! But why not just state ‘I found it’, and it will be understood that the intention is to claim the whole garment? — The term ‘I FOUND IT’ might have been explained as denoting ‘I saw it’, the mere seeing [of the garment] entitling him to claim it as his possession.2 Therefore the plea ‘IT IS ALL MINE’ is added, so as to make clear that seeing alone does not constitute a claim. But how could it be thought that one who has only seen [the garment] could plead ‘I found it’? Does not Rabbannai3 say that the phrase and thou hast found it4 means ‘thou hast taken hold of it’? — It is admitted that the Scriptural use of the term ‘found’ implies having taken hold, but the Tanna uses popular language, in which, on seeing something, one might use the term ‘found it’, [the belief being prevalent] that one acquires [a lost article] by sight alone. For this reason it was necessary to add the plea ‘IT IS ALL MINE’ and thus to indicate that the mere seeing [of an ownerless object] constitutes no claim to possession. But even so, would it not have been sufficient to state ‘IT IS ALL MINE’ without the plea of ‘I FOUND IT’? — Had [the Mishnah] stated only the plea ‘IT IS ALL MINE’ I might have said that elsewhere [in the Talmud] the term ‘found’ is used to mean [‘seen’, and the conclusion would have been drawn] that mere sight constitutes a claim to possession. For this reason the Mishnah states first ‘I FOUND IT’ and then ‘IT IS ALL MINE’ so that we may gather from the additional clause that mere sight does not constitute a claim to possession. But how could you say that the two pleas are really one? Is not each plea introduced by the words: ONE OF THEM SAYS and THE OTHER SAYS5 , [viz.] ONE OF THEM SAYS ‘I FOUND IT’, AND THE OTHER SAYS ‘I FOUND IT’, ONE OF THEM SAYS ‘IT IS ALL MINE’, etc.? [To this] R. Papa. or R. Shimi b. Ashi, or, as some say, Kadi,6 replied: The first plea applies to a case of finding, but the second plea applies to a case of buying and selling.7 And it is necessary [to have the two cases].