Into Space, Sterner St. Paul, 1930

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A story on the theme of The Lost Cosmonaut, from the days when space travel was utterly fantastic. The scientist attempts to travel through the moon using an antigravity technology. It's interesting that the author didn't consider rocketry to be a plausible technology. The control systems are unspecified "apparatus".

Another interesting thing about this story is that the inventor is not mad-obssessive, in the 19th century manner. Instead, he's simply pursuing research, and makes the mistake of not testing his invention before putting himself in it. While the story still focuses on the individual inventor (rather than the team, as in later sf), it is more focused on the idea of technology as progress, rather than striking a cautionary note.

There's a small bit of casual racism, but it isn't that egregious.