Blacking

During his tour, Dickens meets Commissioner Wentworth and takes exception to New York city's jail. He recalls when, as a boy of 12, his own father was jailed for nine months without any evidence. Charles had obtained employment with Cousin James, working in horrible circumstances making boot polish. At home, Mr. Kerr continues to press for repayment and the elder Dickens finds himself in the sponging-house, a temporary jail for debtors.