One of the first questions to be decided at the convention was the type of organization of the government. Governor Edmund Randolph presented Madison's "Virginia" Plan recommending a strong, central government and one in which each state would be represented in proportion to its population. This plan is sometimes referred to as the "Large State" Plan because most of the larger states favored it: according to this plan, the more population a state had, the greater the representation. The small states had their plan also: it was presented by William Paterson of New Jersey and is known as the "Paterson" or "New Jersey" or "Small State" Plan. The small states favored states' rights rather than a strong, central government and believed that each state should be represented equally regardless of its population. The "Great Compromise" which was finally adopted was a combination of both plans: a bicameral legislature called Congress was to be created consisting of (1) the House of Representatives with membership from each state based upon the population of the state and (2) the Senate with membership based upon equal representation from each state--two Senators from each state. The plan of government finally adopted provided for a strong central government but with the state governments retaining essential reserve powers. After the Constitution had been completed on September 17, 1787, it was submitted to the Confederation Congress with the recommendation that Congress inform each state legislature about the Constitution and ask for state ratification. The Constitutional requirement for making the document effective was ratification by nine states. Washington was very eager for the Constitution of the United States to be adopted. He wrote many personal letters favoring its adoption including a public letter in which he reminded the states that each state must be willing to make certain concessions for the benefits of the country as a whole. Thirty-nine of the fifty-six delegates signed the Constitution. Only three of the six delegates from Virginia signed it: George Washington, John Blair and James Madison. Madison, in fact, was consulted for an opinion on almost every phase of the Constitution. During the campaign period for and against ratification, Madison joined Alexander Hamilton and John Jay of New York and contributed to a series of essays called "The Federalist." The essays included a discussion of the meaning of the various provisions of the Constitution and attempted to prove that the federal or central government would not misuse the power granted to it. Madison wrote twenty of the eighty-five essays contained in "The Federalist." This series of essays is believed to have influenced more people to favor the adoption of the Constitution than any other written or oral effort.