From: Rabbi Moshe Sofer
To: Unknown recipient
A householder held gold earrings deposited by a maidservant who disappeared, and the Chasam Sofer analyzes three scenarios: if she returned and failed to litigate, her silence constitutes valid mechilah and the earrings belong to the householder; if she is presumed dead, the householder need not surrender them, siding with the Ya'avetz against the Maharam Lublin; if she is alive but was prevented from returning and mistakenly assumed the earrings forfeit, this is mechilah b'ta'us and does not bind, so the householder must publicize the matter via newspaper, and if no response comes, appraise and record the earrings, use them while paying rental fees, and compensate for depreciation upon her return.
Source: Shu"t Chasam Sofer CM §122