What was going on when I was born?

The steep decline in short-term interest rates appeared to be spreading yesterday to the intermediate and long-term bond markets, despite a heavy supply of new note and bond issues. Illustrating the continuing drop in short term-rates, new threeand six-month Treasury bills averaged 12.695 percent and 12.721 percent, respectively, at yesterday's auctions. or sharply below last week's auction rates of 13.352 percent for the three-month bills and 13.619 for the six-month issue. Three months ago, the same issues were auctioned at rates three percentage points higher. As a result of the six-month Treasury bill auction yesterday, banks and savings institutions may pay a top rate of 13.659 percent on new six-month savings certificates starting today. The new rate is onequarter of a percentage point higher than the average of the last four six-month bill auctions.

In the quarterly profits table in Busi- ness Day yesterday, the name and sales figures for Kidde Inc. were incor- rect. The company had sales of $740,- 048,000 in the quarter ended Sept. 30, 1981, up 14 percent from the previous year.

year-old student at Evander Childs High School in the Bronx, is in her fifth year of high school and is determined to get a diploma no matter how long it takes. She is one of many students around the country who do not finish high school in the customary four years, taking an extra semester or an additional year or longer to graduate. Often, such young people are 19 or 20 years old before they get their diplomas. The idea that high school ought to be completed by the time a person reaches the age of 18 is no longer as strictly observed as it once was. There is now more willingness to accept the idea that some students need more time to get through the required curriculum and should be allowed to proceed at their own pace. There is also more willingness to accept the idea that some students require less time.

The United States today confirmed that Americans had been involved in military support activities in Libya and called the involvement ''reprehensible.'' According to Dean Fischer, a State Department spokesman, American citizens have been servicing planes of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi's Libyan Air Force, including C-130 transports and CH-47 helicopters. Mr. Fischer also said that he could confirm that American citizens had also served as crew members on charter flights from Libya to Chad on United African Airways, a Libyan line used to ferry troops and equipment. But, the States Department spokesman added, ''Our information is that they have not been pilots'' on either the military or troop-carrying charter planes. Libya, a militant Arab nation in North Africa, has been warring in Chad.

International The U.S. stressed the Camp David approach to a Middle East peace. President Reagan also told King Hussein of Jordan that it was imperative to cooperate in seeking an overall settlement in the region. But there was no indication of any change in Jordan's refusal to take part in negotiations arising from the Egyptian-Israeli accords, and later the monarch publicly endorsed Saudi Arabia's plan for regional peace. (Page A1, Column 6.) Creation of a P.L.O.-governed state is essential to the Middle East peace plan proposed by Saudi Arabia, according to Crown Prince Fahd. In expressing support for the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Saudi leader asserted that the Camp David accords were ''a dead end.'' (A8:1.)

President Reagan told King Hussein of Jordan today that the United States stood by the Camp David approach to a Middle East peace and that it was imperative to cooperate in seeking a settlement. Alluding to the assassination of President Anwar el-Sadat of Egypt, Mr. Reagan said in his welcoming remarks, ''Recent tragic events make it even more imperative that we work together if solutions are to be found.'' But there was no indication of any change in Jordan's refusal to participate in negotiations stemming from the Camp David accords. After an hourlong A glittering dinner was held for King Hussein and his wife. Page B14. meeting at the White House, King Hussein publicly endorsed Saudi Arabia's peace plan for the Middle East, which the Saudis regard as a substitute for the Camp David approach.

Japan, which has been strongly criticized for its growing exports and big trade surplus with Europe and the United States, would presumably be the last to use barriers against imports from abroad. But Japan is apparently planning to help its ailing aluminum industry by establishing a program of tariffs that American officials say is protectionist and likely to add further to the United States trade gap with Japan. ''Japan's timing on this issue is terrible, almost unconscionable,'' Lionel H. Olmer, United States Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, said in an interview. Commerce Secretary Malcolm Baldrige, who led a mission to Tokyo, mostly to discuss ways of increasing American imports, said at at a recent news conference that he brought up the aluminum issue at each of his several sessions with top Government representatives.

Polish workers heed Walesa's appeal to end strike A3 U.S. aide defends sale of 40 F-16's to Pakistan A3 New Iranian Premier announces Cabinet A4 Around the World A5 Pentagon denies report of U.S.- Saudi accord A7 Washington Talk Briefing B10 Representative Whitten to make 40 years on the Hill B10 The Clean Air Act is increasingly entangled in politics B10 The political rumor is an art form in the nation's capital B10 ELECTION DAY Today is Election Day. It is a state holiday in New York and New Jersey. It is not a holiday in Connecticut. Parking - Alternate-side regulations suspended in New York City; all other rules in effect. Sanitation - No collection, no street cleaning in New York City. State and municipal offices - Closed in New York and New Jersey, open in Connecticut. State courts - Closed in New York, New Jersey, open in Connecticut. Federal offices - Open. Postal service - Regular schedule. Banks - Federal Reserve and most banks in New York and New Jersey, closed. Connecticut banks, open. Stock and commodity markets -Open. Transportation - Normal schedules for subways, buses and trains. Libraries - Closed in New York City. Many closed in New Jersey. Open in Connecticut. Public schools - Closed in New York City. Many closed in New Jersey and Connectiuct.

An article on the Style page Saturday about new devices for the disabled gave misleading information on prices. The Arroya sled for paraplegics costs $980. A bicyclelike vehicle propelled by arms is not yet on the market.

The Marathon Oil Company, responding swiftly to an unwelcome $5 billion takeover attempt by the Mobil Corporation, filed an antitrust suit against Mobil yesterday and obtained a temporary restraining order halting the giant oil company's tender offer until next Tuesday. By late in the day, however, Mobil got Judge Frank Battisti of the United States District Court in Cleveland to schedule a hearing for 10 A.M. today to hear its arguments in favor of lifting the order immediately. The Marathon suit charged that a Mobil takeover would lessen competition in the marketing of gasoline in the Middle West and in other regions. Marathon shares, permitted to trade for barely 15 minutes on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday afternoon, soared nearly $23 a share, to $90 - $5 more than Mobil offered to pay in announcing its takeover bid last Friday. Before trading was halted on Friday, Marathon had stood at $67.

Bail of $250,000 was set in Manhattan yesterday for Cynthia Boston, a suspect arrested in Mississippi last week on a Federal conspiracy charge involving the Oct. 20 armored-car robbery in Rockland County. Magistrate Joel Tyler set the bail at a one-hour hearing, held amid extremely tight security, in Federal District Court in the United States Court House at Foley Square. The magistrate, noting a ''tenuous'' identification of Miss Boston, reduced her bail from the $500,000 that had been ordered in Mississippi. One of her lawyers, William M. Kunstler, described the reduction as ''a meaningless gesture.'' He said he would appeal for much lower bail.

A band of seven prisoners tonight released six hostages they had held in a wing of the Eastern State Correctional Institution here since Wednesday. The first word came as state police officers, ending their siege of the area, came rushing through the prison gates, heading for home. ''Nobody's hurt,'' one said. ''It's all over.'' That was at 6:25 P.M., five days almost to the minute since four of the convicts were foiled in an escape attempt when a guard fired at them as they scaled a wall. They retreated to a nearby kitchen, where they seized six prison employees and 32 inmates who were working there. Word Comes From Columnist The official word that the remaining hostages had been freed tonight came from Chuck Stone, a columnist with The Philadelphia Daily News who had been called in to help negotiate the prisoners' surrender. His first words were the same: ''It's all over.''