Waldemar Kaempffert's "skyrocket car" from 1919.   I rather like this early spacecraft; it's rather cozy.  You not only have radium engines and a huge view port for taking in the lunar scenery, but a natty nautical steering wheel to boot.  I also like the fact that this is a ship you can maintain with an spanner and an oil can.  Now that's craftsmanship!

Kaempffert's discussion of a voyage to the Moon is quite lucid, though he didn't seem to have much fondness for hanging about once he got there, stating,

One minute on the moon would be so harrowing an experience that I would surely rush back to my car, pull the starting lever of my radium engine and hurl myself back to earth, where I belong.

I had the same reaction to Milton Keynes.

Tales of Future Past | Ephemeral Isle | Freelance Writing | Radio Plays | Shop