LEWDNESS

Licentiousness; an offense against the public economy, when of an an open and notorious character; as by frequenting houses of ill fame, which is an indictable offense, or by some grossly scandalous and public indecency, for which the punishment at common law is fine and imprisonment. Open lewdness. Lewd or lascivious behavior practised without disguise, secrecy, or concealment. The adjective relates to the quality of the act, not to the place nor to the number of spectators.