Kesubos - Daf 79
- אם יבא שטר מברחת לידי אקרענו
The Gemara brings an incident of a woman who wanted to keep her properties out of the reach of her prospective husband and wrote them over as a gift to her daughter. She got married and subsequently divorced and came before Rav Nachman to demand that her daughter return the property, and he tore up the shtar. He ruled the shtar was not valid because she never really intended the transfer. When Mar Ukva was asked if what Rav Nachman did was appropriate, he said that this is what Rav Chanilai bar Idi said that Shmuel said: מורה הוראה אני – “I am a legal authority,” and I say: אם יבא שטר מברחת לידי אקרענו – “if a shtar of a woman who is keeping property away from her husband comes before me, I will tear it up.” Rava said to Rav Nachman that the reason Shmuel rules this way is דלא שביק איניש נפשיה ויהיב לאחריני – because a person does not leave himself penniless and give his property away to others, but that is in the case of strangers. But here, a mother would give it all away to her daughter and therefore the shtar should be valid. Rav Nachman answered, that when compared to her daughter, נפשה עדיפא לה – she herself takes precedence.
- When the husband and wife disagree on which real estate to buy with her inherited money
The next Mishnah states: נפלו לה כספים – If a woman inherited money, ילקח בהן קרקע והוא אוכל פירות – land should be bought with it and he eats the produce. פירות התלושין מן הקרקע ילקח בהן קרקע והוא אוכל פירות – If she inherited produce detached from the ground, land should be bought with it and he eats the produce. The Gemara discusses cases in which the husband and wife disagree on what type of real estate to buy. פשיטא ארעא ובתי ארעא – It is obvious that if one spouse wants to buy land and the other wants to buy a house, they buy land. Rashi explains that they both can insist on land because it is better for them. The husband can say he wants the land because the produce is greater, and the wife can say she wants the land and not the house, because it is liable to depreciate. If one wants to buy houses and the other wants date palms, they buy date palms. Rashi explains that houses are more profitable since date palms are prone to dry out.
- ולד בהמת מלוג וולד שפחת מלוג
It was taught in a Baraisa: ולד בהמת מלוג לבעל ולד שפחת מלוג לאשה – the offspring of a melog animal belongs to the husband. The offspring of a melog shifchah belongs to the wife. But Chananyah ben achi Yoshiah says: עשו ולד שפחת מלוג כולד בהמת מלוג – they make the offspring of a melog shifchah like the offspring of a melog animal, and the husband receives both. The Gemara says that it is understandable according to Chananyah that the husband receives both the offspring of the melog animal and shifchah, היינו דלא חיישינן למיתה – that is because he holds that we are not concerned for the possibility of the mother’s death. If he was, then the offspring would be considered the principal and go to her. But according to the Rabbanon, if they are concerned for the death of the mother, then both should go to the wife, and if they are not concerned, then both should go to the husband? The Gemara answers לעולם חיישי למיתה – Really, they are concerned for the death of the mother, ושאני בהמה דאיכא עורה – but an animal is different, because there is always its hide. Even if the animal were to die, some principal would remain. Therefore, there is no reason to prevent the husband from taking the offspring.
