The first medical book published in Missouri. Sappington, a physician in Saline County, began prescribing quinine for his patients with malaria, with considerable success. He soon taught his slaves to manufacture the pills, and in 1832 began their wholesale distribution. After accumulating considerable wealth and notoriety, Sappington published his methods in this text. DAB calls it " ... perhaps the first medical treatise written west of the Mississippi ..." Perotti, pp. 27-29.