Q: On a canoeing trip, during the food break, someone’s canteen fell into the water and floated downstream. May I take it?
A: We mentioned that when an item is swept out to sea and not reasonably possible to rescue, we presume the owner’s yei’ush or hefker. Conversely, when it falls into a slow-moving river with impediments, if the item has simanim and those likely to find it are Jewish, we presume that the owner does not have yei’ush (C.M. 259:7).
When the item falls into a medium-sized river and can be rescued only with difficulty, or even if the river is slow-moving, but the item has no simanim, then, if the owner chases after the item, this indicates that he does not have yei’ush, and the finder must return it. However, if the owner does not bother to chase after the item, this indicates that he has yei’ush and the finder may keep the item (Rema 259:7; Gra 259:19; Nesivos 259:3).
If the owner was not aware that the item fell into the river, the finder must return the item in any case, because had the owner known, he might have chased after it, as with other yei’ush shelo mida’as. It is questionable whether the finder is obligated to toil to retrieve it.
