if he purchased what he
knew to be another's property, acting in the interests of that other
and with the intention of returning the same to its owner. Otherwise,
his claim is against the one from whom he obtained the article, and not
against him to whom he is obliged to turn it over.

He may, if he be shrewd enough, anticipate the serving of the owner's
claim and secure himself against a possible loss by selling back for a
consideration the goods in question to the one from whom he bought
them. But this cannot be done after the claim is presented; besides,
this proceeding must not render it impossible for the owner to recover
his property; and he must be notified as to the whereabouts of said
property. This manoeuvre works injustice unto no one. The owner stands
in the same relation to his property as formerly; the subsequent holder
assumes an obligation that was always his, to refund the goods or their
value, with recourse against the antecedent seller.

The moment a person shirks the responsibility of refunding the
possessions, by him legitimately acquired, but belonging rightfully to
another, that person becomes a possessor in bad faith and stands
towards the rightful owner in the position of a thief. Not in a
thousand years will he be able to prescribe a just title to the goods.
The burden of restitution will forever remain on him; if the goods
perish, no matter how, he must make good the loss to the owner. He must
also disburse the sum total of profits gathered from the illegal use of
said goods. If values fluctuate during the interval of criminal
possession, he must compute the amount of his debt according to the
values that prevailed at the time the lawful owner would have disposed
of his goods, had he retained possession.

Finally, there may be a doubt as to whether the object I possess is
rightfully mine or not. I must do my best to solve that doubt and dear
the title to ownership. If I fail, I may consider the object mine and
may use it as such. If the owner turn up after the prescribed time, so
much the worse for the owner. An uncertainty may exist, not as to my
proprietorship, but as to whom the thing does belong. If my possession
began in good faith and I am unable to determine the ownership, I may
consider myself the owner until further developments shed more light on
the matter.

It is different when the object was originally acquired in bad faith.
In such a case, first, the ill-gotten goods can neve