Bava Batra 4B

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Text Excerpt

נשעייה באמתא מלבר. וניעבד מלגיו! עביד חבריה מלבר, ואמר: דידי ודידיה הוא. אי הכי, השתא נמי ⁠– דקפיל ליה חבריה, ואמר: דידי ודידיה הוא! קילופא מידע ידיע.

The party who builds the wall should smear it with clay up to a cubit at the top of the wall on the outside. The Talmud suggests: Let him do this on the inside. The Talmud explains: In that case, his neighbor might also do it on the outside, that is, on the side facing his own property, and say: The wall is both mine and his. The Talmud responds: If so, that is, if there is a concern for such deception, now also when the person who builds the wall smears it with clay on the outside, his neighbor can peel it off and say: The wall is both mine and his. The Talmud explains: Peeling clay is noticeable and the deception will not succeed.

הוצא ⁠– אמר רב נחמן: סינופי יריכי מלבר. וניעבד מלגיו! עביד נמי חבריה מלבר, ואמר: דידי ודידיה הוא. אי הכי, השתא נמי ⁠– גייז ושדי ליה, ואמר: דידי ודידיה הוא! משריק ליה טינא. השתא נמי ⁠– אתי חבריה וקליף ליה! קילופא מידע ידיע.

The Talmud asks: If he builds a partition of palm branches, how does he make a border mark? Rav Naḥman said: He directs the tips of the branches to the outside. The Talmud suggests: Let him do this to the inside. The Talmud states: If he so directs the branches, his neighbor might also do the same to the outside, that is, to the side facing his own property, and say: The partition is both mine and his. The Talmud objects: If so, that is, if there is concern for such deception, now also when the one who builds the partition directs the tips of the branches to the outside, the neighbor can cut off the tips and throw them away, and say: The partition is both mine and his. The Talmud counsels: He should smear the tips of the palm branches with clay. The Talmud comments: Now also, the neighbor might come and peel the clay off. The Talmud answers: Peeling is noticeable.

Text data via Sefaria: William Davidson Edition - English and William Davidson Edition - Vocalized Aramaic, CC-BY-NC; edition provenance: Koren. Display terminology has been modernized for readability.