A new Mishna teaches us that if a person says that he owes one of two people one hundred dinars but he doesn't know which one, or if a person says that the father of one of two people's fathers lent him one hundred dinars but he doesn't know which one, then he gives each person one hundred dinars.
The Mishna continues: if two people deposited money with one person, and one of them deposited two hundred dinars and the other deposited one hundred dinars, and each person claimed to be the person who deposited two hundred dinars, then each of the people is given one hundred dinars only. The remaining one hundred dinars are put away until Elijah comes. Rabbi Yosei notes that the swindler loses nothing according to this ruling.
Finally, the Mishna speaks of a similar case to this last one but where the money comes in the form of vessels. If two people deposit two vessels with a person, one worth one hundred dinars and the other worth two hundred dinars, and each later claims that the more valuable vessel is his, one person is given the smaller vessel and the other is given 100 dinars from the sale of the larger vessel. The remainder of the money is kept until Elijah comes.
The Gemara considers the psychology behind some of these dealings. If a person admits his own obligation, shouldn't we trust his evaluation? When is a person suspicious? When is a person responsible for his own error in discerning another person's character? And are we discussing a robbery or a swindler? The rabbis wonder about a person who screams versus a person who is silent. They consider silence tantamount to an admission. They also speak about the conversations that might have taken place between the players. Such conversations might indicate that a claim was uncertain. If the players were different professions, that might add additional information to the Mishna. A shepherd, for example, might experience the deposit of additional animals in his flock than a person living in the city.
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