1,859. Testimony in a Found Document

Hilchos Geirushin 13:27

Let’s say that a Jew reports that a Jewish man died in his group in a certain location. He describes the man’s facial features and other identifiable signs. In such a case, we don’t guess that it must have been person X until a witness testifies regarding the deceased’s name and city. However, if someone says, “One of the residents of city X traveled in our group and died,” we investigate the matter in that city. If only one man left, then his wife may remarry.

Hilchos Geirushin 13:28

Let’s say that a document was found saying that X the son of Y died or was killed. If it can be determined that this document was written by a Jew, then the deceased’s widow is permitted to remarry. Similarly, let’s say that a person lost the power of speech, so he was tested as one would be when it comes to giving a get and he was found to be mentally competent. If such a person writes that person X died, we rely on what he has written and the widow may remarry. We don’t follow the usual interrogation procedures with witnesses who testify about a man’s death because the Sages didn’t enact any stringencies in this matter. They were lenient in order to enable a woman to remarry.