[newgeezer]

> The latter three...

The rule is: the latter of two, the last of three or more.

Yes, of course. Since the author correctly used "latter" here -- in a list of four (Rakove, Main, Gruber, and Roth), there are two threes: the former (Rakove, Main, and Gruber) and the latter (Main, Gruber, and Roth) -- I'm left wondering why you brought it up. ;-)

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Bellesiles says his book is "more about culture, not statistics."
Clinton culture, perhaps ?

[Grut]

...and in a list of twenty there are two nineteens(1-19 and 2-20), but I somehow doubt 'the latter nineteen' would be greeted with cries of joy at Oxford. Sorry, nice try but it won't work.

I brought the matter up just to pimp the Globe, always a worthy endeavor.