14 DEPARTMENT BULLETIN 912. 



It is quite probable, however, that the frequency indicated for the 

 territory about Cheyenne, Wyo., for example, might have been 

 equaled or even exceeded by other localities had all local areas in the 

 relatively severe hail territory been represented. With all due allow- 

 ance for these limitations, the chart doubtless indicates the prevalence 

 of hail with a reasonable degree of accuracy. 



The lines on the chart are intended to connect various points at 

 which the average annual frequency of hail during the months men- 

 tioned and for the period indicated has been found to be equal or very 

 nearly equal. Thus the lines marked 1:0 are intended to connect the 

 places at which hail occurred on the average once each year during 

 the 14-year period, while the lines marked 2.0 are intended to connect 

 the places with an annual average of two occurrences of hail during 

 the months considered, and so on. 



The approximate distribution of hail insurance on growing crops 

 in the United States during the year 1919 is shown in figure 4. The 

 total of such risks in force was estimated to be $559,134,000. The cir- 

 cles on this map represent by their respective areas the relative 

 amounts of hail risks in force in the various States. They also indi- 

 cate by the sectors into which they are divided the group or type of 

 insurance institution by which such insurance was carried. The sec- 

 tors colored black in various circles indicate the part of the total hail 

 insurance in a given State carried by mutual hail insurance compa- 

 nies; the checkered sectors indicate the part carried by joint-stock fire 

 insurance companies; and the striped sectors, the part carried by 

 State hail insurance departments. 



As indicated by the map, the three States of Kansas, North Dakota, 

 and Iowa, ranking in the order given, led all other States in the 

 amount of hail risks in force. In fact, these three States together had 

 more than one-half of the total hail risks in force in the United States. 

 The approximate amount of risks reported from each of the three 

 was: Kansas, $116,056,000; North Dakota, $99,603,000; and Iowa, 

 $73,471,000. These amounts represent, respectively, 21 per cent, 17 

 per cent, and 13 per cent of the total risks in the United States. The 

 States of Nebraska, South Dakota, and Minnesota follow in the order 

 named having risks, respectively, equal to 9 per cent, 8 per cent, and 

 6 per cent of the total. The State of Oklahoma is seventh on the list, 

 with risks equal to 4 per cent of the total. None of the remaining 

 States had an amount equal to much over 2 per cent of the total, and 

 most of them had less than 1 per cent. 



With reference to the distribution of the risks between the three 

 types of insurance institutions, it may be recalled from figure 1 that 

 the joint-stock companies, in 1919, carried approximately one-half 

 of the total risks, while the mutual companies and State departments 

 carried about one-fourth each. The predominance of joint-stock hail 

 insurance during the year in question may also be seen from figure 4. 



