Bava Basra Daf 162 בבא בצרה דַף 162

Rebbe Yochanan says: צריך שיחזור מענינו של שטר בשיטה אחרונה – one is required to repeat the basic elements of the שטר in the last line, and not write any new information. Rav Amram explains: לפי שאין למדין משיטה אחרונה – because we do not learn anything from the last line. The Rashbam explains that עדים typically leave some space between the text and their signatures, which would enable someone to add a fraudulent line into the text. Therefore, any new information contained in the last line of a שטר is disregarded. Rav Amram told Rav Nachman that his source for this rule is a Baraisa: הרחיק את העדים שני שיטין מן הכתב פסול – if the signatures of the witnesses were distanced two lines form the text, [the שטר] is invalid; שיטה אחת כשר – if the distance was only a single line, it is valid. The reason the שטר is invalid when two lines of space are left is דלמא מזייף וכתב – perhaps [the holder] will forge and write a fake clause at the end of the text. If so, then a single line of space should invalidate the שטר for the same concern!? Rather, it must be that we do not learn anything from the last line, so he would need two lines of space to add something.

The Gemara asks: שיטה ומחצה מאי – if there is a line and a half of space between the text and the signatures, what is the halachah? Is the שטר valid, because two normal lines cannot be written into such a space, or is it invalid, because he can squeeze two lines of cramped text into the space? A proof is brought from a Baraisa which states: הרחיק את העדים שני שיטין מן הכתב פסול – if the signatures of the witnesses were distanced two lines form the text, [the שטר] is invalid; פחות מכאן כשר – but if the distance was less than that, it is valid. This proves that any space smaller than two full lines does not invalidate the שטר, so a שטר with one and a half lines of space is valid.

The previous Baraisa continues, that if a שטר had four or five signatures, ונמצא אחד מהן קרוב או פסול – and one of them was discovered to be a relative of one of the parties, or a disqualified witness, תתקיים עדות בשאר – the testimony is upheld through the other valid witnesses. Although ordinarily, if one witness in a group is found ineligible, the entire group’s testimony is disqualified, here, we assume that these invalid עדים signed only to fill an empty space left in the שטר, and not for the purpose of testifying.

This Baraisa supports Chizkiyah, who said: מלאהו בקרובים כשר – if he filled [the blank space of a שטר] with relatives, [the שטר] is valid. ואל תתמה – And do not wonder how invalid signatures can be better than two lines of blank space, which is invalid, שהרי אויר סוכה פוסל בשלשה – because we find similarly that airspace disqualifies a succah at three tefachim of width, yet סכך פסול פוסל בארבעה – invalid סכך disqualifies the סוכה only with four tefachim of width, demonstrating that empty space is worse than invalid סכך.