Mishnah Bava Batra 3

חזקת הבתים. והבורות. והשיחין. והמערות. והשובכות. והמרחצאות. ובית הבדין. ובית השלחין. והעבדים. וכל שהוא עושה פירות תדיר חזקתן שלש שנים מיום ליום. שדה הבעל. חזקת השלש שנים. ואינה מיום ליום. רבי ישמעאל אומר שלשה חדשים בראשונה. ושלשה באחרונה. ושנים עשר חדש באמצע. הרי שמנה עשר חדש. רבי עקיבא אומר. חדש בראשונה. וחדש באחרונה. ושנים עשר חדש באמצע. הרי ארבעה עשר חדש. אמר רבי ישמעאל במה דברים אמורים בשדה לבן. אבל בשדה אילן כנס את תבואתו. מסק את זיתיו. כנס את קייצו. הרי אלו שלש שנים:

The legal period of possession [in order to establish ownership] for houses, cisterns, trenches, caves, dovecotes, bath-houses, olive-presses, irrigated fields and slaves and anything which continually produces a yield is three complete years. The legal period of possession [in order to establish ownership] for a field irrigated by rain water is three years and they need not be completed. Rabbi Yishmael says: “Three months during the first year, and three months during the last year and twelve months during the middle year, which makes eighteen months.” Rabbi Akiva says: “One month during the first year and one month during the last year and twelve months during the middle year, which makes fourteen months.” Rabbi Yishmael said: “When does this apply? With regards to a sown field, but with tree plantation, if he brought in his produce (grapes), collected the olives and gathered in his fig harvest, this counts as three years.”

שלש ארצות לחזקה. יהודה. ועבר הירדן. והגליל. היה ביהודה. והחזיק בגליל. בגליל. והחזיק ביהודה. אינה חזקה עד שיהא עמו במדינה. אמר רבי יהודה לא אמרו שלש שנים. אלא כדי שיהא באספמיא ויחזיק שנה. וילכו ויודיעוהו שנה. ויבא לשנה אחרת:

There are three regions with regards to possession: Judea, beyond the Jordan and the Galilee. If the owner was in Judea and another took possession [of his property] in the Galilee; Or if he was in the Galilee and another took possession [of his property] in Judea, such possession does not demonstrate ownership, until he is in the same region. Rabbi Judah said: “They have specified a period of three years so that if the owner was in Spain and another took possession [of his property] during one year, they could make it known to the owner during the next year and he could return in the third year.”

כל חזקה שאין עמה טענה. אינה חזקה. כיצד אמר לו מה אתה עושה בתוך שלי. והוא אמר לו שלא אמר לי אדם דבר מעולם. אינה חזקה. שמכרת לי. שנתת לי במתנה. אביך מכרה לי. אביך נתנה לי במתנה. הרי זו חזקה. והבא משום ירושה. אינו צריך טענה. האומנין והשותפים והאריסין והאפוטרופין אין להם חזקה. אין לאיש חזקה בנכסי אשתו. ולא לאשה חזקה בנכסי בעלה. ולא לאב בנכסי הבן. ולא לבן בנכסי האב. במה דברים אמורים במחזיק. אבל בנותן מתנה. והאחין שחלקו. והמחזיק בנכסי הגר. נעל וגדר. ופרץ. כל שהוא. הרי זו חזקה:

An act of possession without which there is no claim [on the ownership of the property] is not valid possession [to establish ownership]. How is this so? If he said to him: “What are you doing on my property? And the other answered: “No one ever said anything to me”, this is not valid possession [to establish ownership]. [If he said to him]: “You sold it to me”, “You gave it to me as a gift”, “Your father sold it to me”, “Your father gave it to me as a gift”, this is valid possession [to establish ownership]. He who holds possession [for three years] due to inheritance [from the previous owner], does not need to make a claim. Craftsmen, partners, sharecroppers and guardians cannot establish ownership through possession. A man cannot establish ownership through possession of his wife’s property, nor may a wife establish ownership through possession of her husband’s property, nor a father of his son’s property, nor a son of his father’s property. When is this so [that one needs three years to establish ownership]? When the person attempts to acquire the land through possession. But, when the property was given as a gift, or when brothers shared a piece of their inheritance, or when one claimed title by possession to the property of a convert [who died without inheritors], then if the claimant has shut in, walled up or broken down anything, this counts as securing ownership through possession.

היו שנים מעידין אותו שאכלה שלש שנים. ונמצאו זוממים. משלמין לו את הכל. שנים בראשונה ושנים בשניה. ושנים בשלישית משלשין ביניהם. שלשה אחים. ואחד מצטרף עמהם. הרי אלו שלש עדיות. והן עדות אחת להזמה:

If two testify that he has had the use [of property] during three years and they are found to be false witnesses, they must make full restitution to the owner. If two [false witnesses] testify of the first year, two of the second, and two of the third, they divide up the costs of restitution between them. If three brothers testify and another is included with them, they offer three different acts of testimony, but their words count as a single act of testimony when the evidence is proved false.

אלו דברים שיש להם חזקה. ואלו דברים שאין להם חזקה. היה מעמיד בהמה בחצר. תנור. וכירים. ורחים. ומגדל תרנגולין. ונותן זבלו בחצר. אינה חזקה. אבל עשה מחיצה לבהמתו גבוה עשרה טפחים. וכן לתנור. וכן לכירים. וכן לרחים. הכניס תרנגולין לתוך הבית. ועשה מקום לזבלו עמוק שלשה. או גבוה שלשה. הרי זו חזקה:

What are usages which are effective in establishing title through possession and what are usages which are not effecting in establishing title through possession? If a man put a beast in a courtyard, or an oven or stoves or mill-stones, or reared fowl [in a courtyard] or put his manure in a courtyard, this is not effective in establishing title through possession. But if he built for his beast a partition ten hand-breadths high, so too for an oven, so too for a stove, so too for a mill-stone, [or] he brought fowl inside the house, or prepared for his manure a place three hand-breadths deep or three hand-breadths high, this is effective in establishing title through possession.

המרזב אין לו חזקה. ויש למקומו חזקה. המזחילה יש לה חזקה. סולם המצרי אין לו חזקה. ולצורי. יש לו חזקה. חלון המצרית. אין לה חזקה. ולצורית. יש לה חזקה. איזו היא חלון המצרית כל שאין ראשו של אדם יכול ליכנס לתוכה. רבי יהודה אומר אם יש לה מלבן. אף על פי שאין ראשו של אדם יכול ליכנס לתוכה. הרי זו חזקה. הזיז עד טפח יש לו חזקה ויכול למחות. פחות מטפח אין לו חזקה. ואין יכול למחות:

A gutter spout cannot cause title through possession [so that the spout may still be moved] but title through possession may be claimed to its place [so that the place must be left for its present purpose]. A gutter can give title through possession. An Egyptian ladder cannot give title through possession but a Tyrian ladder can. An Egyptian window cannot give title through possession but a Tyrian window can. What is an Egyptian window? Any through which a man’s head may not enter. Rabbi Judah says: “If it has a frame, even though a man’s head cannot enter through it, it can give title through possession.” A projection, if it extends a handbreadth or more can give title through possession, and the other [into whose premises it projects] can protest against it. But if it is less than a handbreadth it cannot give title through possession and the other cannot protest against it.

לא יפתח אדם חלונותיו לחצר השותפין. לקח בית בחצר אחרת. לא יפתחנה לחצר השותפין. בנה עלייה על גבי ביתו. לא יפתחנה לחצר השותפין. אלא אם רצה בונה את החדר לפנים מביתו. ובונה עלייה על גבי ביתו. ופותחה לתוך ביתו. לא יפתח אדם לחצר השותפין. פתח כנגד פתח. וחלון כנגד חלון. היה קטן. לא יעשנו גדול. אחד לא יעשנו שנים. אבל פותח הוא לרשות הרבים פתח כנגד פתח. וחלון כנגד חלון. היה קטן. עושה אותו גדול. אחד. עושה אותו שנים:

One may not make a window to open into a jointly held courtyard. If he bought a house in another [and adjoining] courtyard he may not open it into a jointly held courtyard. If he built an upper room over his house he may not make it open into the jointly held courtyard; But, if he wishes, he may build another room within his house or build an upper room over his house and make it open into his own house. In a jointly held courtyard a man may not build a door directly opposite another’s door, or a window directly opposite another’s window. If the window was small he may not make it larger; if it was a single window he may not make it into two. But in the public domain he may open a door opposite another’s door, or a window opposite another’s window. If the window was small he may make it larger; if it was a single window he may make it into two.

אין עושין חלל תחת רשות הרבים. בורות. שיחין. ומערות. רבי אליעזר מתיר. כדי שתהא עגלה מהלכת וטעונה אבנים. אין מוציאין זיזין וגזוזטראות לרשות הרבים. אלא אם רצה כונס תוך שלו ומוציא. לקח חצר. ובה זיזין וגזוזטראות. הרי זו בחזקתה:

One may not hollow out a space underneath the public domain [such as] cisterns, trenches or caves. Rabbi Eliezer permits it if it is such that a wagon loaded with stones can [safely] go over it. Projections and balconies may not be built into the public domain; but if a man wishes to build a [projection or balcony] he may withdraw [his wall] within his own domain and build out from it. If he bought a courtyard in which were already projections and balconies, his right to maintain them may not be disputed.