From Padua to Bologna by Ferrara . (Bædeker pp 221-227)
971|2 M . Railway in 3 – 5 hrs. ; fares 14 fr. 50, 11 fr. 10 , 7 fr. 95 c. The line skirts the navigable Canale di Battaglia . To the r . rise the Monti Euganei , an isolated volcanic chain of hills ( 12 M . in length , extending from N . to S . ; 6 M . in breadth , from E . to W .), containing extensive quarries of trachyte , and affording interesting excursions from Padua. Their culminating point is Monte Venda (1890 ft. ), with the ruins of a monastery.
Stat. Abano ; the small town itself, the birth -place of the historian Livy , lies at some distance to the r , of the line . In the vicinity is Bagni (i. e . 'Baths' , a well-appointed establishment), the Aquae Patavinae, or Fons Aponi of the Romans , on the E . slope of the Monti Euganei, with warm springs and mud-baths.
Stat. Montegrotta . To the r., beyond a long tunnel, is seen the old and well-preserved castle of Cattājo , the property of the Duke of Modena , adorned with numerous frescoes by Celotti. It was erected by the now extinct Venetian family Obľzzo , who, according to a notice on a family -portrait, claim to have invented the howitzer . The castle contains very extensive collections of antiguities , mediæval curiosities, weapons, guns, artillery -models , and (in the chapel) old Italian pictures.
Stat. Battaglia possesses warm baths of considerable repute . The principal spring adjoins the château of the Countess Wimpffen , the proprietress of the watering - place. About 3 M . S . W . of Battaglia , on the slopes of the Monti Euganei, is situated Arquà , a small town celebrated as Petrarch ’s favourite retreat, where he died ( in 1374 ). His house and tombs one are shown . The latter is adjacent to the church ; the bust was erected in 1667.
Stat. Monselice , a town at the base of the Monti Euganei, with a ruined castle, was formerly a fortress.
Stat. Este. The town , the Ateste of Tacitus, lies 31/2 M . to the N ., on the road which here diverges to Mantua. It possesses the old ancestral residence of the House of Este, a fine p 'azza , and the church of S . Martino with a leaning tower.
The line now quits the canal, and near stat. Stanghella crosses the Gorzone Canal. The district is fertile , but flat and marshy. Near Boara a small new fort is passed and the Adige crossed .
Stat. Rovigo ( Cappa d ' Oro ; Corona Ferrea ), on the Naviglio Adigetto , is an episcopal residence and the capital of a 'Delegation '. Here, too , there is a leaning tower.
Adria , 1612 M . to the E ., on the Bianco Canal, occupies the site of the very ancient Etruscan town of the same name, whence the Adriatic derives its appellation . The sea , which has gradually receded , owing to alluvial deposits and other causes, is now 17 M . distant.
Stat. Arqud . The line crosses the Bianco Canal near the Bosaro, and near
Stat. Polesella reaches the Po , here the boundary between Venetia and the Romagna . The l. bank of the Po is now followed . Stat. Paviole ; then 8 . Maria Maddalena . The river is then crossed, and the train reaches stations Pontelagoscuro, and Ferrara.
From Ferrara to Bologna by railway in 1 - 11/2 hr. The train proceeds S . and crosses the Cavo Tassone Canal, which communicates with the Pò di Primaro , and traverses flat, well cultivated land ( rice- fields). Stations Poggio Renatico, Galliera , S . Pietro in Casale, and San Giorgio .
From S . Giorgio an excursion may be made to (5 M .) Cento , a small town on the Reno, birthplace of the great painter Guercino (d . at Bologna 1666 ) . Several of the churches, especially those of * S . Biagio and the Ma donna del Rosario , contain admirable works by Guercino, who was greatly attached to his native town . His house , where he received many illustri ous visitors, is still shown . In the centre of the town is his statue by Galetti. - Near Cento is situated Pieve di Cento , a small town with the pilgrimage-church of S. Maria Assunta ; the high altar-piece is an * Assump tion by Guido.
Next stations Castel Maggiore and Corticella . As Bologna is approached the rich fertility of the soil continues to increase .