Study Bava Metzia folio 26B with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
שנפל משנים חייב להחזיר. מאי טעמא? ההוא דנפל מיניה לא מיאש, מימר אמר: מכדי איניש אחרינא לא הוה בהדאי אלא האי, נקיטנא ליה ואמינא ליה: אנת הוא דשקלתיה.
that fell from one of two people, he is obligated to return it. What is the reason? The person from whom the sela fell does not despair of recovering it. He says: After all, no other person was with me, only this one who was with me, as he is unaware that the sela was found by a third party. He therefore thinks: I will seize him and say to him: It is you who took it.
בשלשה אינו חייב להחזיר. מאי טעמא? ההוא דנפל מיניה ודאי מיאש, מימר אמר: מכדי תרי הוו בהדאי, אי נקיטנא להאי אמר: ״לא שקלתיה״, ואי נקיטנא להאי אמר: ״לא שקלתיה״.
In a case where the coin fell from one of 3 people, the finder is not obligated to return it. What is the reason? The person from whom the sela fell certainly despairs of recovering it. He says: After all, two other people were with me. If I seize this one, he will say: I did not take it. And if I seize that one, he will say: I did not take it. Since he cannot make a definitive claim, he despairs of recovering his coin.
אמר רבא: האי דאמרת בשלשה אינו חייב להחזיר – לא אמרן אלא דלית ביה שוה פרוטה לכל חד וחד, אבל אית ביה שוה פרוטה לכל חד וחד – חייב להחזיר. מאי טעמא? אימור שותפי נינהו ולא מיאשו.
Based on the fact that by Torah law, one must return a lost item to its owner only if it is worth one peruta, Rava said: With regard to that which you said, that in a case where the coin fell from one of 3 people the finder is not obligated to return it, we said this only in a case where the total value of the lost coin, when divided by 3, does not amount to the value of one peruta for each and every one of them; but if it amounts to the value of one peruta for each and every one of them, he is obligated to return it. What is the reason? Say that perhaps they are partners, i.e., they own the coin jointly; consequently, they do not despair, as each assumes that one of the other two found it and is holding it for the 3 of them.