Knitted Steering Gloves for Our Soldiers

From Woman's Own, 13th February 1915.

Knitted Steering Gloves for Our Soldiers

REQUIRED: Five ounces of Beehive double knitting wool and Nos. 10 and 12 needles. Cast on No. 10 needles 84 stitches (28 on each of 3 needles), knit 2 plain and 2 purl for 5 inches, then purl 2 together every 3rd row until all 2 purl is 1 purl.  Knit on to No. 12 needles now for 2 inches, then begin hand.  Knit plain all round to 4 stitches off end of 3rd needle.  Here keep the 2 knit with 1 purl each side for thumb.  Knit 3 or 4 rounds, then make 1 stitch on 1 of these plain stitches, knit 2 more rounds, and raise 2 stitches every 3rd round until there are 17 stitches between the purl stitches.  Knit the 17 stitches on to 3 needles, and make 7 more stitches.  Knit this round for thumb in centre of the 7 stitches cast on.  Knit 2 together every 3rd row, then knit 2 together on each needle until 9 stitches remain.  Break off wool, leaving about 5 inches, then thread through a darning needle, and run needle through all 9 stitches; pull up tightly, and cast off.  Now knit about 2 inches of hand part, and cast off same as a toe of a stocking until 22 stitches remain.  These draw together on wrong side, and cast off firmly.

[I think "steering gloves" here is used as another word for this kind of mitten, with a 'bag' covering the fingers.  It has nothing to do with steering anything.  In January 1915, Woman's Own had already published a pattern for steering gloves for trawler men  (given here).  Those were different in not having a gauntlet to go over the sleeve, and were in a thicker yarn.   

These instructions are a strange mixture of very detailed e.g. "Break off wool, leaving about 5 inches, then thread through a darning needle, and run needle through all 9 stitches; pull up tightly, and cast off" and very terse, e.g. "knit about 2 inches of hand part, and cast off same as a toe of a stocking until 22 stitches remain", which does not mention that you need to pick up the 7 new stitches at the base of the thumb, and in any case only makes sense if you know how to knit socks.  And there are bits that I can't understand at all: I don't know what "purl 2 together every 3rd row until all 2 purl is 1 purl", though it might mean "(knit 2, purl 2 together), and repeat to end of round".  But if so, it's a very strange way to express it.]