It's the De'il himsel.......

Legendary Celtic Saints were frequently in the habit of getting into fisticuffs with the Devil - and St Ronan was no exception.   This saint - whose story is scattered around Brittany, the far islands beyond the Outer Hebrides, and Innerleithen in the Scottish Borders - was said to have driven the Devil out of Innerleithen on a visit in the 8th century.   

Today, the St Ronan's Games are the Innerleithen version of the civic days celebrated by all Border towns.   They have been observed for 190 years - only skipped during the two world wars.   At the Cleikum Ceremony, a schoolboy, dressed as a bishop, uses his crozier to overcome the Devil...Later in the day, the effigy of the Devil is burned on Caerlee Hill - thus ensuring that the town is free of Auld Nick for another year.

This effigy of the de'il is 120 years old.   How he escaped the burning then, is not clear.  

All this comes from a very interesting talk at Probus this morning from a veteran member of the St Ronan's Games Committee.