Tobacco plant harvester

Claim 1

A HARVESTER FOR STANDING TOBACCO PLANTS IN A ROW COMPRISING A SELF-PROPELLED WHEELED SUPPORT HAVING A LONGITUDINAL PASSAGE TO RECEIVE THE MAIN STALKS OF THE TOBACCO PLANTS AS THE HARVESTER TRAVERSES THE ROW, CUTTER MEANS CARRIED BY SAID SUPPORT NEAR THE FORWARD END THEREOF ADJACENT SAID PASSAGE TO SEVER THE MAIN STALKS ABOVE THE GROUND, AN ELONGATED SPEAR DISPOSED WITHIN SAID PASSAGE REARWARDLY OF THE CUTTER MEANS FOR PIERCING THE MAIN STALKS AFTER THEY ARE SEVERED, CONVEYER MEANS MOUNTED UPON THE SUPPORT ADJACENT THE CUTTER MEANS AND SPEAR AND ENGAGEABLE WITH THE MAIN STALKS TO TRANSFER THE SAME FROM THE CUTTER MEANS ONTO THE SPEAR AND REARWARDLY ALONG THE SPEAR, RETRACTABLE SUPPORTING MEANS FOR THE SPEAR ARRANGED AT SPACED INTERVALS ALONG THE SPEAR AND OPERABLE IN RESPONSE TO THE PASSAGE OF THE MAIN STALKS THROUGH SAID LONGITUDINAL PASSAGE AND RE-ENGAGING AND SUPPORTING THE SPEAR WHEN THE STALKS MOVE BEYOND THE RETRACTABLE SUPPORTING MEANS, AND AUTOMATIC STEERING MEANS FOR THE SELFPROPELLED WHEELED SUPPORT TO AUTOMATICALLY STEER THE SAME IN THE DIRECTION OF MAIN STALKS WHICH ARE MISALIGNED IN THE ROW AND INCLUDING FEELER ELEMENTS ENGAGEABLE WITH THE MISALIGNED STALKS TO SET THE AUTOMATIC STEERING MEANS INTO OPERATION.