Bava Batra 54a (נד.) — the Talmud in English

This one who

planted turnips in the cracks of the ground belonging to a convert,

[one who planted turnips in the crevices of a convert’s field and did not cover them with earth in the manner of those who sow, and although the turnip subsequently grew and took root in the ground,]

this is not a presumption of ownership!

And we explain:

What is the reason?

Because

at the time when he planted

the turnips,

there was no improvement,

whereas

now that there is improvement, it improved on its own

[at the time that he planted the turnips, he did not make any improvement in the ground; and later, when the ground improved, the improvement occurred on its own].

Shmuel said:

This one who pruned a date palm

[removes branches from the date palm]:

If he did this

with the intention of improving the date palm

[so that the date palm would grow, as pruning benefits a date palm like pruning a vineyard]—

he acquires

the date palm.

But if he did this

with the intention of benefiting the animals

[with the intention of his animals, in order to feed them the branches]—

he does not acquire it.

What are the circumstances?

That is to say, how can we know what his intention was, so that he cannot claim and say, “I intended to improve the date palm”?

If

he took branches from this side and from that side

[if he removed branches from all sides of the date palm], then we presume that he intended

to improve the date palm,

because this is the usual practice when acting for the benefit of the date palm; but if he pruned

the entire tree from one side

[from only one side] of the date palm, then certainly he pruned only

with the intention of benefiting the animals,

because one who does this damages the tree by exposing it entirely on one side, and necessarily his entire intention was for the animals, while he does not take the tree’s benefit into consideration.

And

further

Shmuel said:

said:

This one who clears debris

[cleans and purifies the field of twigs and harmful weeds]:

If he did this

with the intention of improving the ground

[for the benefit of the ground, so that it would be easy to plow]—

he acquires

the field.

But if he did this

with the intention of collecting firewood

[for the sake of the wood that he gathers]—

he does not acquire it,

because this is merely like gathering produce, which does not establish a presumption of ownership.

What are the circumstances?

That is to say, how can we know what his intention was?

If

he took

both

large

and

small

[large and small pieces of wood], then we presume that he did this

with the intention of improving the ground;

but if

he took the large pieces and left the small ones

[he took the large pieces fit for burning and left the small ones], he did this only

with the intention of collecting firewood,

because he needs them for burning.

And

further

Shmuel said:

said:

This one who removes stones

[removes obstacles and levels the surface of the ground] from a field that has not yet been plowed: if he did this

with the intention of improving the ground

so that it would be easy to plow, so that the plow would not strike an obstacle and break—

he acquires it.

But if he did this

with the intention of preparing a threshing floor

[to make a threshing floor there, in order to thresh grain there],

he does not acquire it,

because the field is not designated for making a threshing floor there, and ultimately he will ruin it and dismantle it.

What are the circumstances?

That is to say, how can we know what his intention was?

He took a mound and cast it into a depression

[he took the high mound and cast it into a depression in the ground], thereby leveling the entire ground. We then presume that he did this

with the intention of improving the ground

and so that the plow would not be delayed.

But

a mound into a mound and a depression into a depression

[a mound into a mound and a depression into a depression]: he broadens the mound itself so that it will not be so steep, and likewise arranges the depression itself so that it will be smooth. It follows that the mounds and depressions remain in the field—

with the intention of preparing a threshing floor,

because it is fit for threshing wheat there but not fit for plowing.

And

further

Shmuel said:

said:

This one who opens a water channel into the ground

[he opens an opening for water from the river so that it will enter the field]: if

with the intention of improving the ground

in order to irrigate the field—

he acquires it.

But if

with the intention of catching fish

[so that the fish would be caught],

he does not acquire it.

What are the circumstances?

That is to say, how can we know what his intention was?

If

he opened two openings, one for entry and one for exit

[he opened two openings, one for entry and the other for exit]—

with the intention of catching fish,

because if he intended to irrigate the field, he would have made only one opening, and the field would have been irrigated, while the fish would also have been caught on their own.

But if he opened

one opening

alone—

with the intention of improving the ground.

There was an incident involving

a certain woman who ate from a date palm by pruning it for thirteen years. A certain man came and plowed a little beneath it. He came before Levi—and some say, before Mar Ukva—and he placed it in his possession.

She came crying out before him, and he said to her: What can I do for you!?

For

the fact is that

you did not establish a presumption of ownership in the manner that people establish it!

[There was an incident involving a woman who had gathered branches from one side of a date palm left by a convert for thirteen years. A certain man came and plowed a little beneath the date palm—an action that benefits the tree like plowing benefits sowing, so that he could acquire it through this act. That man came before Levi, and some say before Mar Ukva, and the sage placed the date palm in his possession. The woman came and cried out before him because he had placed the date palm in the possession of the other man. He answered her: What can I do for you!? You did not establish a presumption of ownership in the manner in which people do so when acting with the intention of improving the date palm, because you gathered only from one side of the date palm, indicating that you gathered for the animals], as explained above concerning “this one who pruned a date palm.”

Rav said:

One who draws a figure

of an animal or bird [which is an important image]

on the property of a convert

[on the walls of the convert’s house]—

acquires

the house;

And from where do we know that Rav said this?

For

Rav

did not acquire Rav’s garden except through a figure,

[as Rav acquired the garden adjacent to his beit-midrash—which had been part of a convert’s estate—only by means of a figure that he drew in it].

It was stated: A field

of a convert

that is demarcated by its boundaries

[a field that has boundaries on all four sides], and it is designated for plowing:

Rav Huna said that Rav said: Once he struck it with one hoe-blow

[he struck the ground once with a hoe and dug into it slightly], which is a small amount of plowing,

he acquires

the

entire field.

And Shmuel said: He acquires only the place of his hoe-blow.