cortland is lean and handsome at this period the resemblance between him and stella was frequently remarked upon according to the gossip of cortland 's descendants , the grand tour was a drunken bash from start to finish , with stella and lionel gambling at monte carlo for weeks on end in and out of luxury hotels all over europe they went , and in and out of museums and ancient rums , often carrying their bottles of bourbon with them in paper sacks to this day the grandchildren of cortland talk about his letters home , full of humorous descriptions of their antics and countless presents arrived for cortland 's wife , amanda , and his sons family legend also maintains that the party suffered one tragedy while abroad the nurse who went along to take care of baby antha experienced some sort of 'breakdown ' while they were in italy , and took a severe fall on the spanish steps in rome she died in the hospital within hours of the fall .