Before Charles Dickens wrote the novels he his most noted for, he was a journalist, reporting speeches in the House of Commons from 1832 to 1834.

In 1846 he became editor of the Daily News.

Dickens sought through his books and writings to improve conditions of the poorer classes.


Tooting Baby-Farm Scandal.

In the beginning of 1849 there was an outbreak of cholera at a baby-farm in Tooting run by Peter Drouet, which killed up to 200 children. Amid a growing national public outrage about the scandal Dickens wrote four articles for the The Examiner, even whilst Drouet was on trial.

The four articles Charles Dickens wrote for The Examiner newspaper in 1849, about Drouet’s pauper farm at Tooting were:

  1. The Paradise at Tooting (20 January).
  2. The Tooting Farm (27 January).
  3. A Recorder’s Charge (3 March).
  4. The Verdict for Drouet (21 April).

Household Words.