“We’ll be taking a class trip now to the park a few blocks away,” the teacher announced. “Please walk in an orderly fashion and keep on the sidewalk.” The class headed out to the park.

Zvi, David, Benzion and Aharon were walking along together, when Zvi suddenly stopped. He looked intently at the other side of the street. “I think I see money lying there across the street,” he said.

His friends turned to see.

“Yes, it’s a $20 bill!” Zvi exclaimed. “I saw it first; it’s mine!”

“So what?” argued David. “It’s still on the other side of the street.”

David started running towards the money. So did Zvi, Benzion and Aharon.

David got there first. “I got here first,” he called out. “It’s mine.”

Benzion, who was just three steps behind, quickly stretched out his foot and covered the money with his shoe. “That’s it,” he said. “I touched it first. It’s mine!”

As he removed his foot to pick up the money, Aharon reached down and grabbed the bill. “No,” he called out, “it’s mine!”

The four boys stood in a circle shouting at each other, “It’s mine!” “No, it’s mine!”

Aharon put the $20 bill in his pocket.

The teacher walked over. “What’s going on here?” he asked.

“I saw a $20 bill lying across the street,” said Zvi. “I found it, so it’s mine.”

“But I got to it first,” claimed David.

“I put my foot on it first,” countered Benzion.

“And I picked it up first,” retorted Aharon.

“It was not safe to run across the street,” the teacher said. “Regarding the money, I don’t know what the halacha is. You can either agree to divide it or we can stop along the way at Rabbi Tzedek’s yeshiva and ask him who’s entitled to the money.”

“Let’s ask Rabbi Tzedek!” they all said.

“Listen up,” the teacher called out. “We’re going to stop at Rabbi Tzedek’s yeshiva.”

When they reached the yeshiva, the teacher took them to Rabbi Tzedek’s office.

“We were on a class trip and a monetary question came up,” he said. “Can we come in and ask you the halacha?”

“With pleasure,” he replied. “Come in.” The class piled in to Rabbi Tzedek’s office.

“Who is claiming from whom?” asked Rabbi Tzedek.

“I am claiming from Aharon,” said Zvi. “I saw money on the other side of the street and claimed it, and then Aharon went ahead and took it.”

“I got there first,” David added.

“And I put my foot over it first,” Benzion chimed in.

“What do you say?” Rabbi Tzedek asked Aharon.

“It’s all true,” replied Aharon, “but I picked it up first.”

“Who gets the money?” asked the teacher.

Rabbi Tzedek turned to the four boys. “The money belongs to Aharon,” he ruled.

Rabbi Tzedek then explained, “A person who finds a stray bill is permitted to keep it (C.M. 262:1). However, for a person to acquire a lost item, he must take possession of it through a kinyan (act of transaction). Seeing the lost item alone is not sufficient to make it yours. Putting your foot on it, or even lying down on it, also does not make it yours, since this does not constitute an act of acquisition. Only picking up the item, or dragging it, if it is heavy, is a valid kinyan to acquire the item (268:1). Therefore, neither Zvi nor Benzion acquired the money until Aharon picked it up and acquired it.”

“We learned, though, that whoever comes close first acquires the item,” inquired David.

“There is, indeed, a concept of ‘daled amos,’ replied Rabbi Tzedek. “In order to prevent fighting over found items, Chazal instituted that the item belongs to whoever comes first within close proximity. This means within four amos, which is approximately 7 feet. We consider this area as belonging temporarily to the person who stands there.”

“So why is the money not mine?” asked David.

“Chazal only instituted this in semi-public areas,” answered Rabbi Tzedek, “such as side alleys or the very edges of public areas where people generally don’t walk. Such an area can be considered as belonging temporarily to the person who stands there. Had the money been there, you could have acquired it through the rule of daled amos. However, in a public area, like the street, or in private property, this idea of daled amos doesn’t apply (268:2; see Aruch Hashulchan 268:1).

“Therefore,” concluded Rabbi Tzedek, “the money remained unclaimed until Aharon finally picked it up.”