Kesubos Chapter 9, Mishnah 3. This mishnah continues the ideas taught in the previous mishnah, and its subject is the law of seizing property of the deceased.
"HaManiach peiros telushin" - One Who Leaves Behind Detached Produce:
If a person passed away and left behind produce that had been detached from the ground - which has the status of movable property - whoever comes first and seizes it acquires it, and it is not taken away from him:
The heirs - if they came first and seized it, they are the ones who acquire it.
A creditor - if he came first and seized it, he is the one who acquires it.
The wife - if she came first and seized it for her kesubah, she is the one who acquires it.
This ruling expresses the position of Rabbi Tarfon regarding seizure, that even a seizure made after death is effective.
The Law of the Surplus:
The mishnah goes on to ask: what is the law when the wife or the creditor seized more than what is owed to them - the wife more than her kesubah, and the creditor more than his debt? The surplus, the excess in their hands, must be returned. According to Rabbi Tarfon, if there are additional creditors, the surplus is given "lakosheil shebahen" - to the weakest among them.
Who is "the kosheil"?
As we learned in the previous mishnah, the Gemara disagrees about the definition of the "kosheil," and there are two opinions on the matter:
It refers to the wife, since she certainly is not out looking for a groom.
It refers to the holder of the later document, who is unable to collect from a wide range of properties, but only from more recently sold properties.
In contrast, it is stated, as was already taught in the previous mishnah, "ein merachamin badin" - we do not show mercy in judgment: the surplus is given to the heirs, because all the other claimants can collect only by taking an oath, whereas the heirs require no oath - and therefore the property falls to them by default.