Checking brooms for curses

[porphyria_ash]

No: HPFGUIDX 40675

 ~Cindy~ wrote:

> Hello! My name is Cindy and I am new to HPforGrownups. 

Welcome, Cindy. Now we have two of you. ;-)

> I was 
> wondering if anyone has any explanation for why in SS when Harry's 
> broom starts acting strangely no one thinks to test it for curses. 
> Hagrid even says, "Can't nothing interfere with a broomstick except 
> powerful Dark magic(SS,ch.11,p.190)." Yet when Harry receives a 
> broomstick from an anonymous source Professor McGonagall is quick
to 
> check it for every curse in the book.

Well, McGonagall bought Harry his first broom, so presumably she got
it from a reputable vendor and/or she and Flitwick tested it for
curses before she had it sent to him. Now when it started acting up
at the first Quidditch match, Snape at least had no doubts about 
exactly what was causing the problem: the broom wasn't intrinsically 
cursed, but someone was casting a spell upon it "live." Perhaps he
said something to McGonagall about it afterwards, or perhaps experienced 
wizards could tell by looking at the 'broom bucking' jinx that it wasn't 
something physically embedded in the broom. His broom hadn't acted 
up before or afterwards, so maybe that convinced everyone it was a 
temporary problem. 

But I would like to know more about the process of checking an object
for curses. I admit it seems up come up a little out of the blue. 

~Porphyria, nervously typing on her format-gremlin-nightmare computer