the exception was archie bald kitzmiller caught in the fire fight, he did not consider his pledge to return binding under the circumstances, he later said, and took refuge in the nearby wager house hotel. the bullet-riddled stephens remained crumpled on the pavement, exposed to a hard rain and the horrified gaze of onlookers. i've seen big beasts killed, and they did not lose more blood. but stevens wasn't yet dead. after lying still for a few minutes, he began to move and groan. brown couldn't risk sending out another man, but a hostage volunteered to do so. joseph brewer went into the bullet-riddled street, helped stephens into the wager house and returned to captivity n. a strange day that mixed cruelty and kindness, brewer's act was among the most extraordinary. also astonishing was the fortitude of the man he'd rescued. stephens had already attracted notice from the townspeople for his unflinching defense of the armory, now a doctor dressed the wounds to his face, torso and limbs, stephens became a figure to all for his majestic physique. another described him as the finest spec