OTAGO

OTAGO, the southernmost province in the South Island, New Zealand, somewhat less in size than Scotland, is mountainous and inaccessible in the W., but in the E. consists of good arable plains, where British crops and fruits grow well; the climate is temperate; timber abounds; there are gold, coal, iron, and copper mines, manufactures of woollen goods, iron, and soap, and exports wool, gold, cereals, and hides; founded in 1848 by the Otago Association of the Free Church of Scotland, but immigration became general on the discovery of gold in 1861; education is promoted by the Government in a university and many colleges and secondary schools; the capital is Dunedin, the chief commercial city of New Zealand, the other principal towns being Invercargill, Port Chalmers, Oamaru, Milton, and Lawrence.