Dumbledore's mistakes?

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 141880


> Alla:
> 
> IF Dumbledore indeed knew nothing of what Tom already had done, that 
> would be a different story, but the problem is - he did. Of course, 
> not that he had done as much harm at elven as he did as Lord 
> Voldemort, but he knew what Tom did to those three chidren and he 
> WAS concerned about it. 
> 

Pippin:
All Dumbledore knows, second-hand from Mrs. Cole, is that Billy Stubbs's rabbit got hung 
from the rafters, and that after the  two children went to explore a cave with Tom they 
were never quite right. He does not know whether Tom did  things on purpose or whether 
it was accidental magic. If Tom was capable of turning over a new leaf, he deserved the 
chance to do it -- if he wasn't, then Dumbledore's little knowledge wouldn't have made 
much difference even if he had shared it. Tom could have pretended remorse and said that 
he didn't know what he was doing, and the people he had charmed would have believed 
him. I don't know whether Slughorn was Head of Slytherin in those days, but he would 
certainly have believed Tom, and obviously Dippet wasn't willing to hear a word against 
him.

It isn't likely that Dumbledore had the  influence back then that he does in Harry's day -- 
he  wasn't yet the headmaster or the wizard who led the resistance against  Voldemort, or 
the one who vanquished Grindelwald, or the one on the chocolate frog card.

Pippin