﻿XIV 
  

  

  which 
  he 
  had 
  already 
  been 
  engaged 
  for 
  twenty 
  years. 
  He, 
  however, 
  

   soon 
  entered 
  on 
  it 
  again, 
  for, 
  by 
  a 
  royal 
  decree, 
  Jan. 
  6, 
  1836, 
  he 
  was 
  

   appointed 
  Professor 
  of 
  Astronomy 
  and 
  Geodesy 
  at 
  the 
  Ecole 
  Militaire. 
  

   During 
  this 
  time 
  he 
  paid 
  much 
  attention 
  to 
  falling 
  stars, 
  and 
  gave 
  a 
  

   method 
  for 
  determining 
  the 
  height 
  of 
  aerolites, 
  by 
  making 
  simultaneous 
  

   observations 
  from 
  different 
  points. 
  He 
  also 
  made 
  experiments 
  on 
  the 
  

   declination 
  and 
  inclination 
  of 
  the 
  needle. 
  

  

  Quetelet 
  had 
  very 
  earnest 
  views 
  on 
  the 
  subject 
  of 
  education, 
  and 
  he 
  

   had 
  twice 
  occasion 
  to 
  make 
  them 
  publicly 
  known 
  — 
  once 
  under 
  the 
  Govern- 
  

   ment 
  of 
  the 
  Low 
  Countries, 
  once 
  after 
  the 
  Eevolution 
  of 
  1830. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Commission 
  instituted 
  by 
  King 
  William 
  in 
  1828, 
  he 
  was 
  one 
  

   of 
  the 
  small 
  minority 
  who 
  wished 
  to 
  emancipate 
  public 
  instruction. 
  He 
  

   demanded 
  a 
  reduction 
  of 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  Universities, 
  and 
  the 
  establish- 
  

   ment 
  of 
  two 
  Polytechnic 
  Schools 
  — 
  one 
  for 
  the 
  northern 
  provinces 
  of 
  the 
  

   kingdom, 
  the 
  other 
  for 
  the 
  southern 
  provinces. 
  Finally, 
  he 
  maintained 
  

   that 
  the 
  time 
  had 
  come 
  for 
  substituting 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  modern 
  languages 
  for 
  

   that 
  of 
  Latin, 
  still 
  in 
  use. 
  

  

  Between 
  1823 
  and 
  1832 
  Quetelet 
  was 
  much 
  occupied 
  with 
  Statistics 
  ; 
  

   and 
  the 
  papers 
  he 
  published 
  on 
  this 
  subject 
  have 
  perhaps 
  contributed 
  

   more 
  than 
  any 
  others 
  to 
  popularize 
  his 
  name. 
  

  

  The 
  first 
  memoir 
  was 
  read 
  to 
  the 
  Academy, 
  and 
  entitled 
  " 
  Memoire 
  

   sur 
  la 
  loi 
  des 
  naissances 
  et 
  de 
  la 
  mortalite 
  a 
  Bruxelles." 
  

  

  The 
  second, 
  also 
  read 
  to 
  the 
  Academy, 
  " 
  Eecherches 
  sur 
  la 
  population, 
  

   les 
  naissances, 
  les 
  cleces, 
  les 
  prisons, 
  les 
  depots 
  de 
  mendicite, 
  &c. 
  dans 
  

   le 
  Eoyaunie 
  des 
  Pays-Bas." 
  

  

  A 
  third, 
  also 
  read 
  to 
  the 
  Academy, 
  " 
  Eecherches 
  Statistiques 
  sur 
  le 
  

   Eoyaume 
  des 
  Pays-Bas." 
  

  

  Iso 
  new 
  memoir 
  appeared 
  in 
  1830 
  ; 
  but 
  during 
  the 
  years 
  1831 
  and 
  

   1832 
  he 
  devoted 
  most 
  of 
  his 
  time 
  to 
  Statistics, 
  and 
  published 
  the 
  fol- 
  

   lowing 
  five 
  memoirs 
  on 
  the 
  subject 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  " 
  Eecherches 
  sur 
  la 
  loi 
  de 
  croissance 
  de 
  l'homme." 
  " 
  Eecherches 
  sur 
  

   le 
  penchant 
  au 
  crime 
  aux 
  differents 
  ages." 
  " 
  Eecherches 
  sur 
  le 
  poids 
  de 
  

   l'homme 
  aux 
  diiferents 
  ages." 
  " 
  Eecherches 
  sur 
  la 
  reproduction 
  et 
  la 
  

   mortalite," 
  conjointly 
  with 
  M. 
  Smits. 
  " 
  La 
  Statistique 
  des 
  Tribunaux 
  de 
  

   la 
  Belgique 
  pendant 
  les 
  annees 
  1826 
  a 
  1831." 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  memoir 
  " 
  Sur 
  le 
  penchant 
  au 
  crime," 
  Quetelet 
  worked 
  out 
  some 
  

   of 
  the 
  ideas 
  already 
  made 
  known 
  by 
  " 
  Les 
  Eecherches 
  Statistiques 
  sur 
  le 
  

   Eoyaume 
  des 
  Pays-Bas." 
  

  

  He 
  passed 
  in 
  review- 
  the 
  different 
  causes 
  tending 
  either 
  to 
  develop 
  or 
  

   to 
  lesson 
  the 
  disposition 
  to 
  crime, 
  and 
  denied 
  that 
  instruction 
  in 
  reading 
  

   and 
  writing 
  had 
  the 
  purely 
  beneficial 
  influence 
  usually 
  ascribed 
  to 
  it. 
  

  

  In 
  enumerating 
  his 
  works 
  we 
  must 
  not 
  omit 
  two 
  other 
  papers 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  " 
  De 
  linfluence 
  des 
  saisons 
  sur 
  les 
  facultes 
  de 
  l'homme," 
  and 
  " 
  Sur 
  la 
  

   possibilite 
  de 
  mesurer 
  rinfluence 
  des 
  causes 
  qui 
  modifient 
  les 
  Elements 
  

   Sociaux." 
  

  

  