An alley that is higher than twenty cubits must be lowered. R’ Yehudah says: He need not. And one which is wider than ten cubits must be narrowed. However, if it has the form of a doorway, even if it is wider than ten cubits, it need not be narrowed.

The adjustment of an alley — Beis Shammai say: A pole and a crossbeam. But Beis Hillel say: A pole or a crossbeam. R’ Eliezer says: Two poles. A disciple — in the presence of R’ Akiva — stated in the name of R’ Yishmael: Beis Shammai and Beis Hillel did not differ concerning an alley which is narrower than four cubits that it may be [adjusted] with a pole or a crossbeam. Concerning which did they differ? Concerning one which is wider than four cubits and up to ten cubits. Beis Shammai say: A pole and a crossbeam. But Beis Hillel say: A pole or a crossbeam. Said R’ Akiva: They differed in both cases.

The crossbeam of which they spoke — it is wide [enough] to hold an ariach; an ariach is half a brick measuring three fists. It is sufficient for the crossbeam to be one fist wide to hold an ariach lengthwise.

Wide [enough] to hold an ariach and strong [enough] to hold an ariach. R’ Yehudah says: Wide, even if it is not strong.

If it was [made] of straw or of reeds, we view it as if it were [made] of metal; bent, we view it as if it were straight; rounded, we view it as if it were squared. Anything which has a circumference of three fists has a diameter of one fist.

The poles of which they spoke — their height is ten fists, while their width and thickness are any size. R’ Yose says: Their width is three fists.

We may use anything as poles, even a living being; but R’ Yose forbids [this]. And it transmits tumah-contamination as a tomb cover; but R’ Meir considers it uncontaminated. And we may write bills of divorce on it; but R’ Yose HaGlili invalidates [it].

A caravan which made camp in a valley and surrounded it with animal trappings — they may carry within it provided that the barricade is ten fists high, and the gaps do not exceed the walled portion. Any gap which is ten cubits wide is permitted for it as an entrance; greater than this is prohibited.

We may attend to all the necessities of the deceased: We may anoint and rinse him, provided we do not move any of his limbs; we may pull the pillow from under him and lay him on the sand in order that [his body] keep; we may bind up the jaw, not that it should close, but that it should not [open any] further. So, too, [with] a beam that broke, we may support it with a bench or with the side-pieces of a bed, not that it should be raised, but that it should not [sag any] further. We may not close the eyes of the dead on the Sabbath, nor [may we do so] on a weekday at the moment of death, [for] whoever closes the eyes [of a dying person] at the moment of death is a murderer.

If darkness overtakes a person on the road, he may give his purse to a gentile; if no gentile is with him, he may place it on the donkey. When he reaches the outermost courtyard, he may remove those objects that may be handled on the Sabbath; and [as for] those that may not be handled on the Sabbath, he may untie the ropes, and [allow] the sacks [to] fall of themselves.

We may untie bundles of straw before an animal, and we may scatter tender cedar boughs, but not triply bound bundles of straw. We may not shred neither fodder nor carobs before an animal, whether [it is] lightweight or heavyweight. R’ Yehudah permits [crushing] carobs for a lightweight [animal].

We may neither stuff a camel, nor cram it, but we may put food into its mouth. We may not fatten calves, but we may put food into their mouths. We may put food into the mouths of fowls, and we may put water into bran, but we may not knead it. We may not place water before bees or before doves that are in a dovecote, but we may place [water] before geese and chickens, and before Herodian doves.

We may cut up gourds before cattle or a carcass before dogs. R’ Yehudah says: If it was not [yet] a carcass prior to the Sabbath, it is prohibited, since it is not something that was prepared.

We may annul vows on the Sabbath, and we may seek release [from vows] for things that are necessary for the Sabbath. We may stop up a window, and we may measure a patch or a mikveh. An in-cident occurred in the days of R’ Tzaddok’s father and in the days of Abba Shaul ben Batnis, that they stopped up the window with an earthenware jug, and tied a cup with a rush to ascertain whether a vat had an aperture of a handbreadth or not. And from their words we learned that we may stop up, measure, and tie on the Sabbath.