192 WAX AND COMB. 
them as straight as is desirable ; and even when in frames 
a sharp edge, or guide, is furnished, they will need some 
attention to make them carry the combs straight to the 
bottom. The rapidity with which comb will be built, 
depends upon the temperature of the hive and amount of 
honey being gathered or fed. 
SIZE OF CELLS. 
Practically, all cells built for brood-rearing are assumed 
to be precisely of the same size, but close observation and 
measurements prove that there is a slight variation. This 
is so minute, however, that it does not materially affect 
the average number of cells to the square inch, which, in 
worker-combs, is 25 on each side. The diameter of 
worker-cells, therefore, averages about '/, of an inch. 
The depth is ‘/,, of an inch. Drone cells are larger, so 
that four will about measure an inch, or 16 to the square 
inch. Their depth, when used for breeding, is about °/,, 
of an inch, but they are often much deeper when used for 
storing honey. 
Where drone and worker cells are built on the same 
comb, the joining of cells of different sizes will produce 
considerable irregularity, as may be seen in fig. 2. Even 
where two combs, with cells of the same size, unite, they 
are often quite imperfect. Queen cells are of exceptional 
size and shape, and are constructed according to the 
especial needs of the colony, and it is quite frequently the 
case that a large number are never completed. (See fig. 66.) 
HEXAGONAL SHAPE NOT ESSENTIAL. 
The introduction of comb-foundation and experiments 
with artificial comb, have resulted in a more thorough 
understanding of the essential size and form of cells. The 
shape of the natural cell is evidently determined more by 
considerations of economy, strength, and space, than by 
