Clue for the "ancient protection?"

[Kirstini]

No: HPFGUIDX 57707

A quickie (yes, I KNOW I should have jammed it in with my other 
posting, but it's only just occurred to me. Sorry!) on the "contents 
of Dumbledore's letter" debate. Many of the most recent threads have 
centred on Petunia's refusal to leave Harry in the house by himself, 
and around exactly how alone he was that day at the zoo. I've just 
noticed that nobody has touched on Harry's pre-Hogwarts schooling 
and whether or not he was protected there (in this debate). I think 
I remember reading a earlier post which pointed out that the 
Dursleys were about to send Harry to a seperate school from Dudley 
anyway when he got his Hogwarts letter, so therefore Dudley (ie a 
relative)'s presence alone couldn't have been what was protecting 
him at primary school. Just thought I'd offer it up. Snap away.

Kirstini

PS - I read in the Digest, and can't find it now, someone who made a 
distinction between the home-based day schools of America and the 
boarding schools in Britain. Just thought I'd point out - Boarding 
schools are (very emphatically) not the norm in Britain. Harry was 
off to the local comprehensive (day school, non fee-paying) before 
the Hogwarts letter. I was puzzling this over in this context as it 
meant he'd be under the Dursley's feet all the time, but then 
remembered the dyeing of clothes grey to make uniform (even 
comprehensives in England insist on compulsory uniform, not the case 
in Scotland or secular schools in Ireland) and concluded that the Ds 
would rather have him around than actually pay any money for his 
education, which potentially adds another layer to this argument.