The Sun. — 1861-10-03 (London, England)

NEWCASTLE.  • NEWCASTLE-04TYNE, OCT. 2. The inquest upon the body cif Mr. Mark Frater, assassinated in Blackett-stree tc, in this town yesterday, will be held this ew ming. His dreadful niurder is the one topic of co nversation among all classes. The prisoner seems to be the only person unmoved by the dreadful crime) he has committed. He is perfectly cool and collect ed, two things, from the manner he reiterates th.e m, giving him the highest satisfaction,—the dea tla of his unfortunate victim, and the vast sale the l A .rticulars of his crime will give to the penny papepi. Mr. Frater was a middle aged, married man, with a family of daughters, and the shock of his de at)a, as might have been expected, occasioned them ,terrible distress—his eldest daughter, 20 years of age, being very ill. The motive for Clark committi no this foul crime was revenge. A local paper Sr Ts this morning :1, The motive which actuated Clarke in the perpetration of this foul and broody outrage is no obscure one. At the time thatrr. Frater 's duty compelled him to distrain. the Iroods of the prisoner, Clarke swore over and ov 3r again, both to Mr. Frater and himself, to his e 1 arks, and to the bailiffs who were in possession, that: he would be revenged, and that he would 'do' for tE e man who had injured him. This took place nearl.v six months ago, and it is therefore clear that, during the whole of that time the miscreant has been nursing his fancied wrong and his passion for revenge. Whether he has waited thus long in order to obtain a proper moment for carrying his scheme into execution or not, none can say. The sharpening of the knife on Saturday, however, shows that (3n that day he had finally fixed upon the speed 3 r execution of his murderous design. With regal, 1. to his previous habits and character we cannot a tate much. He is of Scotch or Irish extraction, but it is not known which, though it is believed that he belongs to Ireland. For several years pas t, however, he has resided in St. Nicholas' church) oard, in this town. He was, unmarried. He occuj pied two rooms, using the one as a sleeping apartmcant, and the other as a workshop. For some time past he had gained his living by making chairs for Mr. Easton, a cabinetmaker, of Pilgrim-street. N ot very long ago he was fined £5 for a ferocious ass ault upon a man, and it is said that he once before n early killed a former landlord, besides being the pert )etrator of other violent deeds. It was broadly hinted yesterday by a number of philanthropists and ot tilers that he was quite insane, and that his executioin would be, in consequence, as great a sin as the r aurder of which ho was guilty. So far, however, then are not the slightest grounds for any such suspicio) 2. Some weeks ago he was employed working at the gaol, and he is reported to have then remark( 3d to one of his fellow workmen that he would et )on be buried there. Whatever may be the trutl It of some of these and a thousand other rumours which were in circulation yesterday, and some of which were of the most absurd and impossible nature, there cannot be a doubt that for months past Clark has cherished a vindictive desire for revenge, and, with all the secrecy and determination of which only the worst men are capable has awaited an opportunity of gratifying it."