General Brice Pursell Disque (July 19, 1879 – February 29, 1960) was a U.S. Army officer and businessman. He is best remembered for having headed the Spruce Production Division during World War I, for conceiving the idea of sending military troops to work in the logging industry to spur wartime wood production, and as the creator of a government-sponsored union, the Loyal Legion of Loggers and Lumbermen. Early life He was born in California, Ohio, which was located southeast of Cincinnati, Ohio on July 17, 1879. Growing up, he attended Cincinnati's public schools and the Walnut Hill School. Early career Disque enlisted in the United States Army in 1899 to serve in the Philippine–American War, rising in rank from private to first sergeant to second lieutenant in Company E, 47th Infantry, United States Volunteers, between September and November 1899. In January 1900, his company landed at Sorsogon in the Bicol Region of Luzon in the Philippines, where it did garrison duty, advanced north against the Filipino Army, and engaged in operations against Filipino guerrillas. In February 1901, he mustered out of the volunteers to accept a regular's commission as a 2nd lieutenant in the 5th Cavalry, with temporary duty at Fort Thomas, Kentucky. In September 1903, he accepted a transfer to the 3rd Cavalry, where a 1st lieutenant's billet was available. Disque was a Distinguished Graduate of the Infantry and Cavalry School at Fort Leavenworth in 1904-1905, then completed the Staff Course in 1905-1906, where his thesis was in law: The Suspension of the Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus in the United States. Disque served as a first lieutenant until 1916, when he was promoted to captain under the 14-years-in-grade rule. In 1917, he resigned to become the warden of the Michigan State Prison. When war was declared, he volunteered to return to the Army, hoping for a battlefield command. On May 7, 1917, he was called to Washington to meet with Gen. John J. Pershing and Chief of the General Staff Maj. Gen. James G. Harbord. They convinced him to remain a civilian and investigate the lumber shortage, caused by a combination of labor union strikes and mill owner profiteering, which was hindering airplane production. Disque decided to bring in military crews to replace lumberjacks who had joined the military forestry divisions, as well as striking workers, who had shut down most timber operations in Washington, and