MISHNAH: If somebody is caught on the road when it gets dark¹, he gives his wallet to a Non-Jew; if no Non-Jew is with him he puts it on the donkey². If he comes to an outer courtyard³ he removes the implements which may be moved on the Sabbath. For those which may not be moved he unties the rope and the sacks fall down by themselves.

footnotes: ¹ Friday evening. ² He may not increase his donkey’s load if a Non-Jew is available since he is responsible for the Sabbath rest of his animal. ³ The first place where his property may be guarded until the end of the Sabbath.

MISHNAH: One unties bundles of straw for animals and one separates packages but not sheaves. One does not crush green stalks or carob for animals whether small or large; Rebbi Jehudah permits carob for small animals⁴.

footnotes: ⁴ Since small animal cannot chew the very hard carob pods, crushing carob for small animals is parallel to opening bundles of hay or straw for cattle.

MISHNAH: One does not stuff⁵ a camel, nor force-feed⁶, but puts food in its mouth⁷. One does not stuff calves but gives food into their mouths. One hand-feeds chickens and adds water to bran but does not give water to bees and pigeons of the dovecote⁸, but gives to geese and chicken and for Herodes⁹ p. 380 Note ד. pigeons.

footnotes: ⁵ Making it eat more than its need to fatten it; in the case of a camel to prepare it for a trip to the desert where it will be able to survive on minimal rations. ⁶ Pushing the food down its throat. ⁷ Without forcing. ⁸ These are flying larger distances and easily find water by themselves. ⁹ This translation is very tentative. It is not known which kind of pigeons were kept in cages and therefore had to be fed every day. Maimonides reads רודסיות “from Rhodes” but explains “Herodes”. In the Babli one finds דורסיות, ,הרדסיות ,הדרסיות, דורסאית cf. Diqdude Soferim Šabbat

MISHNAH: One cuts squash for animals and a cadaver for dogs¹⁰. Rebbi Jehudah says, if it was not a cadaver before the Sabbath it is forbidden since it is not prepared.

footnotes: ¹⁰ Even if the squash had not been cut from its vine or the animal had not died before the Sabbath.

MISHNAH: One dissolves vows on the Sabbath¹¹ and one may ask about vows¹² if it is a need for the Sabbath. One plugs the skylight and measures a rag¹³ and a miqweh¹⁴ of water to purify by immersion.. It happened in the days of Rebbi Ṣadoq’s father and in the days of Abba Shaul ben Botnit, that they plugged the skylight with a jar and¹⁵ tied a dish to bast to know whether a barrel¹⁷ had a hand-breadth width opening or not¹⁷. From their words we infer that one plugs, and measures, and ties on the Sabbath.

footnotes: ¹¹ Since the power of the father to dissolve the vows of his underage daughter or the husband to dissolve the vows of his wife ends with sundown of the day on which he is informed. ¹² Since the power of a court or of a duly ordained Sage to revoke vows is not limited in time, they may be asked only about vows which interfere with the keeping of the Sabbath. ¹³ Whether it has the minimal dimensions which make it susceptible to impurity. ¹⁴ Whether it contains the required 40 seˋah ¹⁵ Of a house where a corpse was lying in order to allow Cohanim to be on the roof, the skylight had to be closed. If it was built without a shutter, it may be temporarily closed by any object which may be moved on the Sabbath. ¹⁷ The explanation given by the Babli (157a/b) is that there was a corpse in one house, and a window between this and an adjacent house. An open window transmits tent-impurity if it is at least (1 hand-breadth)2. The window was partially blocked and it was impossible to measure the size of the open hole directly. They tied a dish to a flimsy piece of bast (so the knot should not be permanent), lowered it in front of the hole so a well defined part of it covered the hole, and then measured that part to know whether impurity was transferred to the second house. ¹⁷ The explanation given by the Babli (157a/b) is that there was a corpse in one house, and a window between this and an adjacent house. An open window transmits tent-impurity if it is at least (1 hand-breadth)2. The window was partially blocked and it was impossible to measure the size of the open hole directly. They tied a dish to a flimsy piece of bast (so the knot should not be permanent), lowered it in front of the hole so a well defined part of it covered the hole, and then measured that part to know whether impurity was transferred to the second house.