Samuel Robert Corbert-- Associate Regulator

During the winter of 1877, John Tunstall fixated his plans on becoming a landowning rancher in Lincoln County. Alex McSween, who provided legal advice and other services, would become a participant in the scheme on a percentage basis with full partnership one year or so later. Their first act of business was to file on 4,000 acres of land in the Feliz Valley under the Desert Land Act, which expected to become law in March of 1877. However, based on Tunstall's "foreigner" status, he was disqualified. Instead, Tunstall chose two proxies who'd accept the land parcels under their names; they were Dick Brewer and Samuel Corbet.

Later that year, in mid October, (Nolan speculated it was Oct. 18) Robert Casey's widow departed for Texas with some of Tunstall's cattle. When Dick Brewer got wind of her departure as he rode up the Hondo Valley, taking Jesse Evans and his sidekicks to the Lincoln jail, he racked out after her, or more specifically Tunstall's cattle, almost immediately with a seven-man posse that included John Middleton, Fred Waite, Florencio Gonzales, and Samuel Corbet.

On February 23rd, 1878, just 5 days after the murder of his friend John Tunstall, armed with a United States Deputy US Marshal status, Robert Widenmann sprung into action. He implored Lieutenant Goodwin at Fort Stanton to lend soldiers in order to arrest Jesse Evans, Frank Baker, Tom Hill, and George Davis on charges of stealing Government mules. Early that morning, Widenmann and his military escort surrounded the Dolan store. Backed by a sizeable pack of McSween partisans that included Dick Brewer, the Coe cousins, Scurlock, Fred Waite, Billy Bonney, and Samuel Corbet.

Fred Waite and Billy Bonney searched the Murphy Store while soldiers waited outside. Finding nobody there, Widenmann stomped up to the Tunstall store, apparently to search for Evans and gang, and had Brady's five guards arrested, disarmed, and jailed for the night. Sheriff Brady would attempt to counter-attack by having Weidman's followers arrested on a charge of "rioting." Among those arraigned before Wilson and bonded over to the next term of court for a grand jury were Atanacio Martinez, Frank and George Coe, Fred Waite, Sam Smith, Billy Bonney, Frank McNab, two colored men--George Washington and George Robinson, and Samuel Corbet.