The Federal Republic of Lion1904 is a very large, genial nation, notable for its compulsory military service, suspicion of poets, and stringent health and safety legislation. The compassionate, hard-working population of 256 million Lion1904ians are highly moralistic and fiercely conservative, in the sense that they tend to believe most things should be outlawed. People who have good jobs and work quietly at them are lauded; others are viewed with suspicion.

The medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Education, Law & Order, and Defense. The average income tax rate is 36.4%.

The strong Lion1904ian economy, worth 14.2 trillion catnips a year, is led by the Trout Farming industry, with major contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Furniture Restoration, and Retail. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is 55,475 catnips, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 3.8 times as much as the poorest.

Flash floods that dams could have controlled regularly ravage small towns in mountain valleys, tourists soak their luggage in boiling water before unpacking, the government regularly reassures citizens that there are no monsters under their beds, and reinventing the wheel is a favourite pastime of Lion1904ian weapons designers. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Lion1904's national animal is the Meowing Cats, which is also the nation's favorite main course.

Lion1904 is ranked 275,987^th in the world and 449^th in Concord for Largest Black Market, with 82.0 billion Standard Monetary Units.