KNITTED SWEATERS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 15 August 1941, Page 2

KNITTED SWEATERS

WATERPROOF, LIGHT & WARM. MADE BY VANCOUVER ISLAND INDIANS. ; VICTORIA, B.C. For generations, Indians of Southern j Vancouver Island have been knitting ’ sweaters which are not only warm and , durable, but are also waterproof. The ’ total weight of one of these sweaters ’ averages around two and a half to three pounds, and it is waterproof because the natural oils of the virgin ’ wool have not been removed in processing. One sweater will last its wearer for as long as 15 years. The Indians also make their own knitting needles ' from oak, bamboo, and other harder types of wood. Many knitting needles are used in the making of one sweater. As far as is known. Indians of lower Vancouver Island were the first to make these sweaters. But such a serviceable article was not to stay in one area; it wasn’t long before other tribes of the northern end, and the tribes of the mainland, also learned of the art. Now Indians all over the Island and elsewhere, are employing their talents and skill in this enterprise. The Red Cross and other organisations have sent almost 1,000 of these I Indian sweaters overseas for men serving aboard minesweepers and other naval craft. These men fully appreciate the warmth and comfort these particular sweaters afford. Freedom of the arms and body is an important factor in their work, and the lightness of these garments rate them “tops" with seafaring men.