משנה: וְכֵן בֵּית הַבַּד שֶׁהוּא בָנוּי בַּסֶּלַע וְגִינָּה אַחַת עַל גַּבָּיו וְנִפְחַת הֲרֵי בַּעַל הַגִּינָּה יוֹרֵד וְזוֹרֵעַ לְמַטָּה. עַד שֶׁיַּעֲשֶׂה לְבֵית בַּדּוֹ כִּיפִּין. הַכּוֹתֶל וְהָאִילָן שֶׁנָּֽפְלוּ לִרְשׁוּת הָרַבִּים וְהִזִּיקוּ פְּטוּרִין מִלְּשַׁלֵּם. נָֽתְנוּ לוֹ זְמַן לִסְתּוֹר אֶת הַכּוֹתֶל וְלָקוֹץ אֶת הָאִילָן וְנָֽפְלוּ בְּתוֹךְ הַזְּמַן פָּטוּר לְאַחַר הַזְּמַן חַייָב. MISHNAH: And so an olive press built into a rock with a vegetable garden on its top: If it caved in, the garden’s owner may sow on the bottom until he build cupolas on his olive press33Olive presses (as well as wine presses) usually were built with cupolas. If the natural roof of the press hewn into the rock collapsed, the owner of the vegetable plot may use the bottom for his vegetables until the owner of the olive press rebuilds it. The owner of the vegetable garden may fill the top with soil to create a level surface.. If a wall or a tree fell into the public domain and caused damage, he is not liable to pay34Since it was an unforseeable accident.. If he was given an order35By the court, on application of the building police. to tear down the wall or cut down the tree; within the term he is not liable, after the term he is liable.
הלכה: וְכֵן בֵּית הַבַּד כול׳ עַד הַכּוֹתֶל וְהָאִילָן כול׳. אָמַר רִבִּי לָֽעְזָר. מַעֲשֶׂה בְדָלִית אַחַת שֶׁהָֽיְתֵה מוּדְלָה עַל פֶּרְסִיקוֹ שֶׁל חֲבֵירוֹ וְנִפְשַׁח הַפֶּרְסִק. וּבָא מַעֲשֶׂה לִפְנֵי רִבִּי חִייָה הַגָּדוֹל וְאָמַר לוֹ. צֵא וְהַעֲמֵד לוֹ פֶּרְסִק. אָמַר לֵיהּ רִבִּי יוֹחָנָן. וְלֹא מַתְנִיתָא הִיא. וְכֵן בֵּית הַבַּד שֶׁהוּא בָנוּי בַּסֶּלַע וְגִינַּת אַחֵר עַל גַּבָּיו וְנִפְחַת. שָׁמַעְנוּ שֶׁאֵין כּוֹפִין. וְהָתַנֵּי רִבִּי חִייָה. כּוֹפִין. נֵימַר. וְלֹא פְלִיגֵי. מָאן דָּמַר. כּוֹפִין. שֶׁהוּא שָׁם. וּמָאן דָּמַר. אֵין כּוֹפִין. בְּשֶׁאֵין עוֹמֵד שָׁם. HALAKHAH: “And so an olive press,” until “if a wall or a tree,” etc. Rebbi Eleazar said: It happened that a vine was growing on another person’s peach tree36Latin prunus persica “Persian plum tree”, and the peach tree withered37Killed by the vine which overgrew it.. The case came before the great Rebbi Ḥiyya who told him, go and provide him with a peach tree. Rebbi Joḥanan told him: Is this not a Mishnah? “And so an olive press built into a rock and another’s vegetable garden is on its top”? Do we not understand that one does not force38The Mishnah does not require the owner of the oil press to rebuild but gives the gardener the right to use the area on top of the oil press for his purposes. The court is not empowered to force the owner of the oil press to reconstitute the vegetable garden.? But Rebbi Ḥiyya stated that one forces39To provide a replacement tree.! We may say that they did not disagree. He who says that one forces, if he is there. But he who says that one does not force, if he is absent40The Mishnah speaks of an absentee landlord. Until the absentee be notified it may take a long time; in the meantime the gardener is given the use of the area occupied by the oil press..
נָֽתְנוּ לוֹ זְמַן לָקוּץ. כַּמָּה הוּא זְמַן. רִבִּי הוֹשַׁעְיָה אָמַר. ל̇ יוֹם. “If he was given an order to cut down.41This quote shows that the Mishnah underlying the Halakhah is not the version presented in the Mishnah (and Maimonides’s autograph) but the text given in the Babli and many Mishnah mss. which mention cutting down the tree before tearing down the wall.” What is the time limit? Rebbi Hoshaia said, 30 days42In the Babli, 118a, this is attributed to R. Joḥanan (R. Hoshaia’s student.) In the Tosephta, 11:7 and Bava qamma 2:5, the wording is: at least 30 days. The enforcement of a strict limit of 30 days for obeying court orders is Amoraic..