...the fourth is the first tether a pilot comes to ..the NYTimes made the blunder in reporting...the others just copied the story.
Incorrect. The four arresting wires are numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4 from aft to fore. The number four wire is the last wire the plane can catch, not the first. Spend some time on a CVN and learn something so you won't repeat your own blunder.