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"[Science fiction] is the one literary medium left in which we have a free hand. We can do any damn thing we please."
- Alfred Bester

Hand Grip  
  Means of pulling oneself through a space ship at zero gravity.  

I can't find an earlier example, but it seems like there should be one for such a simple idea.

Arcot walked, or tried to walk, forward, but as all power had been cut off, save the meteor protection, there was no weight, and their motion was a series of long dives, and since the control room and the observatory were in line, Arcot made a single dive to his destination. The walls of the rooms and the corridors had been equipped with hand grips.

The others reached for hand grips, and Arcot swung the car gently about on its axis, till the observatory was pointing toward Sirius, the brightest star in our heavens, and from this much lesser distance it shone as a brilliant point of light that blazed wonderfully.

Technovelgy from Islands of Space, by John W. Campbell.
Published by Amazing Stories in 1931
Additional resources -

Always practical, Campbell makes use of this homely but useful idea.

Compare to the foot loops from Power Plant (1931) by Murray Leinster and the thigh grips from the same story.

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Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from Islands of Space
  More Ideas and Technology by John W. Campbell
  Tech news articles related to Islands of Space
  Tech news articles related to works by John W. Campbell

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