"Quetelet published quite a number of poems, and until the age of thirty he continued to exercise his poetical talents as pastime and relief from his scientific studies. His poems were of a serious tone, but were well received by both public and critics. We may mention here an Essai sur la romance, which Quetelet brought out in 1823. ...This essay, together with translations, in prose and in verse, of German, English, Italian, and Spanish romances, shows Quetelet's wide acquaintance at that early age with the various European literatures."