34 
BULLETIN 1480, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
Table 14. — Farm pHces of hay: Selected illustrations of size of sample, 
measures of dispersion, and probable ei~ror — Continued 
Average 
Coeffi- 
cient of 
variabil- 
ity 
Probable 
Four 
Number 
of reports 
price 
Standard 
error of 
Relative 
times 
State, commodity, and date 
(arith- 
deviation 
the aver- 
probable 
relative 
metic 
of reports 
age price 
error 
probable 
mean) 
or mean 
error 
Maryland— Continued. 
Dollars 
Dollars 
Per cent 
Dollars 
Per cent 
Per cent 
Baled, March, 1926 
23 
22.42 
3.06 
13.7 
0.431 
1.9 
7.6 
Timothy, March, 1926 
15 
21.60 
3.03 
14.0 
.528 
2.4 
9.6 
Clover, March, 1926 
14 
18.29 
3.41 
18.6 
.615 
3.4 
13.6 
Alfalfa, March, 1926 ... 
11 
24.18 
4.63 
19.1 
.942 
3.9 
15.6 
Nebraska: 
Loose, December, 1925 
69 
10.93 
2.57 
23.5 
.209 
1.9 
7.6 
Baled, December, 1925 
60 
13.35 
2.74 
20.5 
.238 
1.8 
7.2 
Clover, December, 1925 
10 
14.00 
2.97 
21.2 
.634 
4.5 
18.0 
Alfalfa, December, 1925 
89 
13.74 
2.88 
21.0 
.206 
1.5 
6.0 
Prairie, December, 1925 
59 
10.78 
2.57 
23.8 
.226 
2.1 
8.4 
Iowa: 
Loose, December, 1925 
99 
12.90 
2.79 
21.6 
.189 
1.5 
6.0 
Baled, December, 1925 
67 
15.42 
2.90 
18.8 
.239 
1.6 
6.4 
Timothy, December, 1925. _ 
71 
13.48 
2.76 
20.5 
.222 
1.6 
6.4 
Clover, December, 1925 
73 
14.00 
2.81 
20.1 
.222 
1.6 
6.4 
Alfalfa, December, 1925 
58 
15.29 
3.36 
22.0 
.298 
2.0 
8.0 
Prairie, December, 1925 
27 
11.11 
3.35 
30.2 
.435 
3.9 
15.6 
Wisconsin: 
Loose, December, 1925 
37 
13.54 
2.19 
16.2 
.242 
1.8 
7.2 
Baled, December, 1925. 
42 
15.05 
2.48 
16.5 
.258 
1.7 
6.8 
Timothy, December, 1925- - 
35 
15.40 
2.96 
19.2 
.337 
2.2 
8.8 
Clover, December, 1925 
30 
15.37 
3.55 
23.1 
.435 
2.9 
11.6 
Alfalfa, December, 1925 
17 
19.18 
2.62 
13.7 
.429 
2.2 
8.8 
Prairie, December, 1925 
11 
10.09 
2.74 
27.2 
.557 
5.6 
22.4 
Indiana: 
Loose, June, 1925 
42 
12.48 
3.55 
28.4 
.370 
2.9 
11.6 
Georgia: 
Loose, November, 1925 
16 
19.81 
4.65 
23.5 
.792 
4.0 
16.0 
The range in quality of hay is large even in a given locality. The 
differences in freight rates within a State accentuate the variability 
of the prices reported. Nearness to a large city tends to cause higher 
hay prices than prevail further from cities. Hay belongs to that 
class of farm products in which a wide range in prices may be ex- 
pected. A good way to visualize a series of prices made up from 
small samples with considerable variability is to think of them as 
a belt or band extending over a period of a year or more. The 
average price may shift about somewhat from month to month be- 
cause of the fluctuations in the respective samples, but the general 
trend of the price movement is indicated as the general belt or band 
moves along. 
POTATOES 
The price of potatoes has about twice the variability of the price 
of wheat and cotton. Handling and hauling charges, including 
freight rates, cause a considerable difference between the price of 
potatoes in deficit and surplus-producing areas in the same State. 
During the years from about 1915 to 1923 the development of quota- 
tions for potatoes on the hundredweight basis led reporters to record 
100-pound prices erroneously when bushel prices were requested. It 
was not always possible to edit out or convert such reports. Begin- 
ning with January, 1925, the price of potatoes has been asked on 
both a bushel and hundredweight basis; this has improved the ac- 
curacy of potato prices in those States where part or all are sold on 
a 100-pound basis. 
