Dead Babies are no Fun

I actually had a heated discussion with my wife several days back over the ethics of using graveyard dirt from dead babies. How many households in this day and age have that discussion over dinner?

Here is the reference...

Some cases of drawing trade to business places there are three babies
that are - notice, you kin go to work and hire 'em [their spirits] like today.

You hires 'em today, you takes nine thimblesful of dirt from each
grave.
You will tell them to be at your home on the third night.
When they come to your home on the third night, you make you
competition of a incent - [the spirits] come all around [you]. It's [incense is made
of] cinnimin, spice, cloves and allsipce.
[It] may be placed wit this, this whut we sieve [graveyard dirt], 18,
there's 18 - 27, 27 thimblesful of dirt from the graves made with incent and
put onto a coal fire. [This coal] is known to be mostly charcoal.

Burn it, creatin' people what you want to be drawed by it.
The place will be over-run by drawing people on it. You sending the
babies out to bring customers in to you - that's what you hired 'em for. But
you must talk and tell 'em that on the third night, when they come to your
home, what you want 'em to do. And you only use that customary, daily.

(That would be used largely by bootleggers?)
Any business - any business place, restaurants, drygoods places and all.


[Norfolk, VA; Informant #456 - "Doctor English"; Cylinders 432:2-445:2]