STEW (from the French ſtuves, i. e. therma, balneum), thoſe places which were permitted in England to women of profeſſed incontinency; ſo called, becauſe diſſolute perſons are wont to prepare themſelves for venereal acts by bathing; and hot baths were by Homer reckoned among the eſſentiate ſort of pleaſures. Theſe ſtews were ſuppreſſed by King Henry VIII. about the year 1536.
STEWARD (ſeneſcallus, compounded of the Saxon ſteda, i. e. "room" or "ſead," and ward, "a ward" or "keeper"), an officer appointed in another's ſead or place, and always taken for a principal officer within his jurisdiction.
Steward. jurisdiction. Of these there are various kinds. The greatest officer under the crown is the lord high-steward of England, an office that was anciently the inheritance of the earls of Leicester, till forfeited by Simon de Mountfort to King Henry III. But the power of this officer is so very great, that it has not been judged safe to trust it any longer in the hands of a subject, excepting only pro hac vice, occasionally: as to officiate at a coronation, at the arraignment of a nobleman for high-treason, or the like. During his office, the steward bears a white staff in his hand; and the trial, &c. ended, he breaks the staff, and with it his commission expires. There is likewise a lord-steward of the king's household, who is the chief officer of the king's court, has the care of the king's house, and authority over all the officers and servants of the household, except such as belong to the chapel, chamber, and stable.