Its zealous social concern aroused public sentiment and made Sims a strong voice for reform, dramatising the plight of suffering Londoners. He also contributed numerous articles from 1879 to 1883 about the bad condition of the poor in London's slums in the Sunday Dispatch, Daily News and other papers. Many of these were later published in book form, such as The Theatre of Life (1881, Fuller), Horrible London (1889, Billing and Sons), The Social Kaleidoscope, and The Three Brass Balls. In particular, in 1881, Sims and Frederick Barnard wrote a series of illustrated articles entitled How the Poor Live for a new journal, The Pictorial World. This was published in book form in 1883. He also wrote many popular ballads attempting to draw attention to the predicament of the poor. These efforts were important in raising public opinion on the subject and led to reform legislation in the Act of 1885. Sims was appointed as part of an 1882 study of social conditions in Southwark in 1882 and as a witness before the 1884 royal commission on working-class housing. Sims also raised public awareness of other issues, including white slave traffic in a series articles published in the Daily Telegraph, later in book form as London by Night (1906) and Watches of the Night (1907); and the maltreatment of children, writing The Black Stain (1907). Together with Mrs E. W. Burgwin, he founded the Referee Children's Free Breakfast and Dinner Fund (1880), which became London's largest charity of this kind. He also worked to promote the boys' clubs movement and campaigned to open museums and galleries and permit concerts on Sundays as part of the National Sunday League. He also published a number of novels, including: Rogues and Vagabonds Memoirs of Mary Jane Mary Jane Married Memoirs of a Landlady The Ten Commandments Li Ting of London His autobiography, My Life: Sixty Years' Recollections of Bohemian London (1917) became very popular. It consisted of reminiscences originally contributed to The Evening News. Its profiles of Sims London contemporaries are written kindly but with zest. His other books include: The Coachman's Club, Or, Tales Told Out of School (1897, F. V. White and Co.) Living London (3 vols. 1901–1903, Cassell, chronicling the variety in London life) Among My Autographs (1904, Chatto & Windus) Sims was intrigued by the psychology of crime, and he penned some ingenious detective stories. His story collection, Dorcas