Dumbledore and Voldemort's past (was: Alice and Frank/Legilimens and Memories)

[Judy]

Eloise said asked why Dumbledore didn't immediately suspect that the 
Riddle murders were the work of young Tom Riddle:
> > Dumbledore is very good at putting two and two together and 
> > asking the right questions. So what about the following evidence?
> > -He clearly held doubts about young Tom Riddle right from the
> > start,  as Diary!Tom himself attests.
> > -The MOM immediately recognised the *Riddle* murders as magical.
> > -Dumbldedore knew Tom's father's name right from the moment he 
> > interviewed Mrs Cole.

Ah, good question, Eloise!  Once again, we are in the position of 
plugging potential plot holes.
 
Pippin came to JKR's rescue, saying:
> ...Dumbledore at the time of the Riddle murders would have been
> preoccupied with World War II and Grindlewald. If he was reading
> the Muggle papers in those days, it probably wasn't to follow 
> sensational murders.
> In any case, DD wouldn't know at that time that Little Hangleton 
> was connected with Tom, so he would have no reason to be following 
> the news there. The Prophet may not have even mentioned the names 
> of the Muggles that were killed....

Good points.  Also, I think it took Dumbledore a long time to realize 
just how evil Tom Riddle truly was.  Dumbledore does like to think 
the best of people, after all.  He may have suspected Riddle of 
unleashing the basilisk, but even then, he may have thought Tom was 
just curious about the Chamber of Secrets and that Myrtle's death was 
an accident (which it actually was, although presumably not one that 
Tom regretted.) 

Dumbledore also may not have known just how skillful Tom was.  The 
Ministry had said that Morfin, a known Muggle-hater who had attacked 
one of the murdered Muggles previously, was the murderer.  Dumbledore 
probably didn't suspect that Tom already had the ability to murder 
three people, frame someone else for the murder, and even make the 
*framed person* think he had done it.  

So, even if Dumbledore knew the names of the murdered people, the 
explanation that Morfin was the murderer seemed far more plausible -- 
until he found out just what Tom Riddle was. 

-- Judy