We learn to what purport were three of the speeches made during this debate--those of Caesar and of Cato and of Cicero.

The first two are given to us by Sallust, but we can hardly think that we have the exact words.

The Caesarean spirit which induced Sallust to ignore altogether the words of Cicero would have induced him to give his own representation of the other two, even though we were to suppose that he had been able to have them taken down by short-hand writers--Cicero's words, we have no doubt, with such polishing as may have been added to the short-hand writers' notes by Tiro, his slave and secretary.

The three are compatible each with the other, and we are entitled to believe that we know the line of argument used by the three orators.
Silanus, one of the Consuls elect, began the debate by counselling death.

We may take it for granted that he had been persuaded by Cicero to make this proposition.