Many manuals appeared after the first successful demonstration of ether anaesthesia on 16th October 1846 to give basic information about the use of ether for those who wanted to use it in clinical practice. Some of the earliest handbooks survived and are still available. One of them is the booklet “Remarks on the proper mode of administration of sulphuric ether” from WTG Morton, published in 1847. It is displayed at the National Library of Medicine, USA for public use.

        Key words: anaesthesia – history – ether – education