[Avodah] shaliach?? (ownership??)//nafkamina

[Arie Folger]

RHB wrote:
> [I]f someone sends a message or payment (eg reuven to shimon) via a
> shaliach, and then retracts, and asks for the message or money back,
> is the shaliach allowed to retract it? (eg, or once it reaches the
> shaliach's hand, does it becomes the "property of shimon?? and it
> cannot be retracted (???) without his/(shimon's) permisssion?? thanks,
> hb

The Gemara in TB Gittin 14ab discusses that question (translation from
Soncino Talmud):

:: It has been stated: If a man says to another, ‘Take to So-and-so the
:: maneh which I owe him’, Rab says. he continues to be responsible for
:: it, and he is not at liberty to retract the commission, whereas Samuel
:: says that since he is still responsible he is at liberty to retract. May we
:: presume that the point at issue between them is this, that one authority
:: was of opinion that ‘take’ is equivalent to ‘accept on behalf of’, and the
:: other was of opinion that ‘take’ is not equivalent to ‘accept on behalf of’?
:: — No. Both are agreed that ‘take’ is equivalent to ‘accept on behalf of’,
:: and the point at issue is this, that one was of opinion that we make one
:: ruling because of another, and the other was of opinion that we do not.
::
:: It has been taught in agreement with Rab:16 If a man says to another,
:: Take to So-and-so the maneh which I owe him, give So-and-so the
:: maneh which I owe him, take to So-and-so the maneh which he has
:: given me in trust, give So-and-so the maneh which he has given me in
:: trust, he remains responsible for the money, yet if he wishes to retract
:: the commission he is not at liberty to do so. Why should he not be
:: able to retract in the case of trust money, on the plea that [the depositor]
:: does not desire his money to be in the hand of another [party]? — R.
:: Zera answered: We assume that [the sender in this case] is known as a
:: man who denies [his obligations].

I leave to RHB as an exercise whether or not this logic may apply to
Moshe & the lu'hot.

-- 
Arie Folger,
Recent blog posts on http://ariefolger.wordpress.com/
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