 Townspeople recalled that Earl was mischievous as a youth and objected to the nickname "Spider" that was attached to him for reasons unknown.Under the tutelage of Frank Pope, Earl also became a harness-maker, beginning his apprenticeship at the age of fifteen.In 1871, a 23-year-old Earl, armed with several bottles of his father's horse liniment, joined with his brother Foreman in St. Louis, Missouri, where Foreman was engaged in the buying and shipping of horses.