Couldn't he have sold it for more of the money Clay Boy needed for college? Kind of a shame to see it all go up in flames. But I guess it provided a dramatic scene this way.
Love this movie. Watching it for the 100th time and it only gets better. That Maureen O'Hara was one gorgeous woman! And of course Henry Fonda gave one of his usual funny, touching performances.
Rather than start another thread on this same subject, but...
...was I the ONLY person to IMMEDIATELY jump to the conclusion that Mr. Spencer started the fire to file a fraudulent insurance claim? He didn't even pick up the gas can or anything to TRY to make it look like an accident! I was saying, "I can't believe he'd do that, that's a crime, he'll be caught and sent to prison for fraud!"
When it turned out the real reason for clearing the land was honest, it made less sense. I said to Mom, maybe he knew the guy who wanted the land had other uses for it and that was the quickest way to clear it? (It also seemed the surrounding land was dry and the fire could have spread considerably.)