he knew the condition of the russian peasantry , very little removed from slavery , was nearly as pitiable as that of the dragons ; and yet there was something intolerable in the spectacle of hundreds of beasts so hobbled that they might not even fly as was their nature , but instead were confined to scrabbling in pits ; save for those beasts who , cowed by the horror of their circumstances , would consent to be slaves for scraps and at least a little freedom of movement .