Hello kollel,
I have a question on the rambam. In halacha 14:5 he mentions one cannot pick up money until the owner despairs, even though he certainly will despair. This does not seem to be the case where you see the person drop the money.
My question is, in a Jewish area if you see $1 dollar there's a good chance the owner will never even notice let alone despair. So can you not pick it up? Oddly enough, $100 might be easier to keep bc someone will definitely notice that amount.
Thank you.
Hi Joshua,
I will try to summarize the principles of lost and found money.
a. It is well known that a Davar she'Ein Bo Siman, belongs to the finder in subject to despair of the previous owner, as long as the despair ? Yiush, was before the object was found.
b. There is a well-known Machlokes between Abaye and Rava, whether the finder needs to know that the owner of this object, actually knows he lost it, and was Misyaesh mi'Daas. The Halacha is Abaye's opinion, that Yiush she'Lo mi'Daas is not Yiush. If a person finds something that has no Siman, but the owner has not yet Misyaesh, he cannot return it since there is no Siman, but he also cannot use it since it belongs to its owner, even though he cannot ever find him. In such a case, the finder needs to save the object Ad she'Yavo Eliyahu.
c. In a case of something lacking a Siman, there is no Mitzvah of Hashavas Aveida, and on the other hand no prohibition to pick up the lost object. There is only a question whether it is permitted to use the object once the finder picks it up.
d. Money does not usually have a Siman on it, and even if someone might write his name on a money bill, since money is something that changes hands often, in most cases it will not be considered a Siman.
e. The Gemara says that since a person tends to check his money pocket or wallet, every few minutes, if you find money on the street, we can assume that the person who lost the money is already aware of his loss, and was already Misyaesh, since he knows there is no Siman on the money.
f. There are several Poskim who arose this question in our times, since the reality might have changed and people do not check their pockets every few minutes now adays. There are different opinions, but since it is a Safek, even those who are Machmir, agree that the finder can use the money, and write down on a note the details, and just keep the note Ad she'Yavo Eliyahu.
g. Therefore, in a case where we saw the money falling out of someone's pocket, and it is obvious that the money was then picked up before the owner could have known about it, it is hard to find a Heter to use the money.
h. In the cases you brought in your question, I can see what you are saying regarding the one-dollar bill. As I said, after all, the Poskim say it can be used and if someone wants to be Machmir, he can write a notice in his notepad. I totally agree with you that in a case of 100$ bill, people notice the loss and usually within a short period of time, so the Halacha would be like the Gemara says, and the finder can use the money.
Kol Tuv,
Aharon Steiner