“The two most precious things this side of the grave are our reputation and our life. But it is to be lamented that the most contemptible whisper may deprive us of the one, and the weakest weapon of the other.”

English cleric, writer and collector

Charles Caleb Colton was an English cleric, writer, and collector, known for his eccentric manner and for the sayings that bear his name. His life dates are not given here, but he is placed in the English literary world as a figure remembered more for style and wit than for a large public career. He is described as a collector as well as a writer and clergyman, and his reputation rests on the distinctive, slightly odd character attached to him. The surviving record here gives no further details of his works or life, so he is best known simply as a memorable English author whose words have continued to circulate.