The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-08-25
Earl Eastman, sixten Years Old, Who
Looks 10 be Eleven, 10 Wise in
the Ways Of the Un-
derworld.
ONCE LIVED IN THE CITY
Parents Moved From Here TO Pekln
In the spring-Drinks and
Smokes Like One Old In
Experience.

burgs. De police dere is too anxious
to nab youse, and jist can't keep
away from dem. Las winter hops
freight train and beats 1t to St
Louis, and before l got two feet from
the car, dick collars me, and l got
locked up in the detenshun home for
a couple of days, and den dey packed
me back to dis burg"
The speaker was stunted young
boy, weak mentally and physically.
whose excursions in the field Of adven.
ture rival those of the hero in the
yellow backed books he reads con-
stantly. He is Earl Eastman, a for
mer Keokuk boy, 16 years old, just
escaped from the Illinois juvenile re.
formatory at St. Charles.
Used to Live Here.
His parents, Mr. and Mrs. George
Eastman, lived here until this spring
and then removed to Pekin, Illinois.
Earl is well known to the police here
and was picked up Tuesday night by
Officer Brennan when about to enter
box car with several other boys, all
local youths, who escaped.
He has since been held in the city
prison, awaiting the arrival of ILL
nois officers, to take him back to the
st. Charles reformatory. This morn
ing, w. H. Cole, probation officer of
the institution, reached this city.
Young Eastman was surrendered into
his custody by Chief Henneman, and
Cole started to st. Charles with his
prisoner at 1856 this afternoon.
Earl doesn't look like criminal,
nor is he-rather an unfortunate. He
is 16 years old, and progressed as far
in the local schools as the second
grade. He can wade slowly through
dime novels, but write with great
difficulty
He is short and thin, looking to be
about IL years old. He wears short
trousers and blue shirt. When a
reporter entered his cell at the Jail
this afternoon, the air was blue with
smoke. The boy laid down a big
pipe to greet his visitor. and then
began answering questions. He dis.
played no hesitancy about telling his
life story-the same old story of the
adventure loving boy in a poor fam
ily, where the father and mother both
must work and the children can shift
for themselves.
Hoce on icn0eTS T'eTSs
II ruined away from Pekin day
before yesterday" he said, when the
reporter asked how he reached Keo.
kuk. II rode the tender of the en-
gines all the way. Onct, OH de Mime
apolis n st. Louis line, the fireman
saw me. I beats it off de tender into
de dark by de water tank. Den when
de train starts, the shacks tink I'm
gone and don't watch and hooks a
seat on de tender again.
mo, dis amt de first time I've
ruined away. Yep, I've been to all
desc towns about here, but 1 sure is
going to keep out Of desc here big
burgs, for the bulls sure has good
eyes and long arms.
"Oh, learned to smoke about three
years ago." in answer to the report
er's question.
do you drink" the reporter asked
yep, I turned dat about three
years ago. Dat habit got me jagged
too Y'know last spring one night,
gets in wild a bunch of sporty guys
and we all rushes the. can. l drinks
five glasses and my head Is all in a
whirl.
"Den 1 sees a wheel and wants to
take ride, SO l just risks 1t, ard
before l could git it back, de dicks
nab me and lock me up. Den me
mother has me sent to ST. Charles
"Dey Make Me Work."
Nope; didn't like it dere; dey
makes you work too hard. l lit out
about a mont ago. I stole de wheel
in May, and I bin out about four
weeks.
well, yuh see, when I gets back
to Pekin. I'm a goin to ledge Rollins
and git him to let me loose, and den
I'm going to start to work. OATS de
reezun l canned here, l wuz goin' to
work in de shoe factory.
well, if dey lets me go, I'll stay
in Pekin. l amt comm back to dis
burg. l jis can't keep out O trouble .
But EarTs dream bubble Is doomed
to explosion. The boy will be return
ed to St Charles, where an effort
will be made to transform him into a
good man. He is bright little fell
low in some ways. but is simply I'M
developed for his sixteen years, and
has no sense of right or wrong. he
is merely a sample of the producers
of parental neglect, induced by pow