spiritual, adj. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

spiritual adj.

[coining such money was liable to execution, i.e one ‘went to another place]

(UK Und.) pertaining to the counterfeiting of silver or gold coins.

1851

Morn. Chron. (London) 10 Feb. 6/2: If anybody was de- tected in imitating the gold or silver coinage, it was called a ‘spiritual’ business, because it touched his life; hut if it were for copper money only, it was called ‘temporal,’ because he was in no danger of the gallows for that.