Humanitext Reader

Justinian I · The Digest of Justinian §41.2.18.pr-41.2.18.4

Change of Title and Acquisition and Loss of Possession

Passage 6716 of 9271 · Latin

Summary

Celsus discusses the transition, loss, and acquisition of possession, including holding in another's name, delivery to a madman, acquisition by sight, and the retention of possession during intrusion.

[CELSUS libro uicensimo tertio digestorum. ] §41.2.18.prQuod meo nomine possideo, possum alieno nomine possidere: nec enim muto mihi causam possessionis, sed desino possidere et alium possessorem ministerio meo facio.
[CELSUS, in the twenty-third book of the Digests.] What I possess in my own name, I can possess in another's name; for I do not change the cause of possession for myself, but I cease to possess and make another the possessor through my service.
nec idem est possidere et alieno nomine possidere: nam possidet, cuius nomine possidetur, procurator alienae possessioni praestat ministerium.
Nor is possessing the same as possessing in another's name: for he possesses, in whose name the possession is held; the agent provides his service to another's possession.
§41.2.18.1Si furioso, quem suae mentis esse existimas, eo quod forte in conspectu inumbratae quietis fuit constitutus, rem tradideris, licet ille non erit adeptus possessionem, tu possidere desinis: sufficit quippe dimittere possessionem, etiamsi non transferas.
If you deliver a thing to a madman whom you believe to be of sound mind, because he happened to present an appearance of shadowy calm, although he will not have acquired possession, you cease to possess: for indeed it is sufficient to relinquish possession, even if you do not transfer it.
illud enim ridiculum est dicere, quod non aliter uult quis dimittere, quam si transferat: immo uult dimittere, quia existimat se transferre.
For it is ridiculous to say that one does not wish to relinquish except on condition that he transfers it; on the contrary, he wishes to relinquish because he believes he is transferring.
§41.2.18.2Si uenditorem quod emerim deponere in mea domo iusserim, possidere me certum est, quamquam id nemo dum attigerit: aut si uicinum mihi fundum mercato uenditor in mea turre demonstret uacuamque se possessionem tradere dicat, non minus possidere coepi, quam si pedem finibus intulissem.
If I have ordered the seller to deposit what I bought in my house, it is certain that I possess it, although no one has yet touched it; or if, when I have bought a neighboring estate, the seller points it out to me from my tower and says that he delivers vacant possession, I have begun to possess no less than if I had set foot within the boundaries.
§41.2.18.3Si, dum in alia parte fundi sum, alius quis clam animo possessoris intrauerit, non desisse ilico possidere existimandus sum, facile expulsurus finibus, simul sciero.
If, while I am in another part of the estate, someone else has entered secretly with the intention of a possessor, I must not be thought to have ceased immediately to possess, since I am likely to expel him easily from the boundaries as soon as I know.
§41.2.18.4Rursus si cum magna ui ingressus est exercitus, eam tantummodo partem quam intrauerit optinet.
On the other hand, if an army has entered with great force, it holds only that part which it has entered.

Notes

  1. §41.2.18.1quod non aliter uult quis dimittere — The conjunction `quod` introduces a noun clause in apposition to the preceding demonstrative pronoun `illud` ("that, namely that..."). It functions as an object clause after `dicere`, a construction frequently substituted for the classical accusative with infinitive (AcI).
  2. §41.2.18.2mercato — This is the dative singular masculine of the perfect participle of the deponent verb `mercor` ("to buy"), agreeing with `mihi` ("to me who has bought"). The accusative `fundum` serves as the logical object of this participle.
  3. §41.2.18.3facile expulsurus — The future active participle `expulsurus` agrees in gender, number, and case with the first-person subject (*ego*) implied in the passive construction `existimandus sum`. It expresses capability or definite likelihood ("since I am capable of easily expelling him").

Cite this passage

Justinian I, The Digest of Justinian §41.2.18.pr-41.2.18.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi2806.phi002.humanitext-lat1:41.2.18.pr-41.2.18.4

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.