What Was The Role of David Herold

[wsanto]

I think Powell knew he had a limited amount of time in the house. Once his gun misfired, the clock was ticking in his mind. He knew he had to act quickly to kill Seward and everyone in the way in order to have enough time to make his escape. He was probably also surprised by the number of people that would complicate his mission and that raised the stakes and added to the panic. I believe Powell's panic with the misfire, the time, and the numbers is what saved Seward more than anything.

If Powell was a trained Mosby soldier carrying out his mission, why do you suppose he was so remorseful for his actions?