What was going on when I was born?

The Baldwin-United Corporation, which averted bankruptcy last week and is now trying to raise cash, yesterday announced the sale of its five mortgage banking subsidiaries to E.F. Hutton & Company. Baldwin-United, which said it would get $100 million in cash from the sale, also said it had received $77.5 million as prepayment of a promissory note from Daniel K. Ludwig, the entrepreneur and industrialist. Victor H. Palmieri, who joined Baldwin-United in May as president and chief executive officer, said in a statement that the two transactions ''are part of our program to dispose of selected subsidiary companies and related financial assets.'' Mr. Palmieri, who was invited to head Baldwin because of his reputation for resuscitating ailing companies, has said he wants to generate $500 million this year plus $200 million over the next two years through the sale of some of its 250 subsidiaries.

Israel will undertake a partial, staged pullback of its troops to more secure positions in Lebanon, turning over the territory to the Lebanese Army, Israeli officials said today. A formal decision on the details of a pullback could come at a special Cabinet session that officials said would be held Wednesday morning before the arrival here of Secretary of State George P. Shultz. It is also possible that the Cabinet might postpone a formal decision until after Mr. Shultz's visit, particularly if the Secretary of State's stop in Damascus shows any sign of a change in Syria's position. (Mr. Shultz flew to Damascus for a meeting with President Hafez al-Assad after receiving a modest endorsement of his efforts from Saudi Arabia and a gentle prod from Lebanon to get Israel to move ahead with its agreement to withdraw from Lebanon. Page A7.)

Three committees of Mexico's Congress, beginning the process that could allow the former head of the national oil company to be prosecuted for fraud, have voted that ''the acts attributable'' to him ''are susceptible to being considered crimes.'' The former official, Jorge Diaz Serrano, who is now a senator, was accused by the Attorney General last week of fraud totaling $34 million and involving the purchase of two tankers for the fleet of Petroleos Mexicanos, the state-owned oil monopoly, which is known as Pemex. The unanimous vote by the committees was the first step in stripping Mr. Diaz Serrano of his congressional immunity from prosecution. If successful, it would be the first such action by Mexico's Congress against one of its members in at least 30 years.

President Reagan today granted four years of trade protection to American producers of specialty steel. The move angered nations that export steel to the United States and only partly appeased the domestic industry. The protection involves the doubling of tariffs the first year on certain competitive foreign products and the imposition of import quotas on others. The order, which the President described as ''consistent with my belief in minimal Government interference in the marketplace,'' was signed this morning at Mr. Reagan's ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif., and will take effect in 15 days.

International Israel plans a partial pullback of its troops to more secure positions in Lebanon, turning over territory to the Lebanese Army, according to Israeli officials. Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir said the pullback, which is called a ''redeployment'' in Jerusalem, would be carried out in stages, with the Lebanese Army and the multinational peacekeeping forces asked to take control of areas left by Israeli forces. (Page A1, Column 6.) No accord to resolve a P.L.O. mutiny has been reached after three days of negotiations, according to the chief of a six-member Palestine Liberation Organization team seeking to mediate the split between Yasir Arafat and anti-Arafat rebels. (A6:1-4.)

William J. Casey said today that it would have been ''totally uncharacteristic and quite incredible'' for him to have obtained President Carter's debate strategy plans for use by the aides who prepared Ronald Reagan for the 1980 campaign debate with Mr. Carter. ''It could have destroyed the campaign,'' Mr. Casey, who was Mr. Reagan's campaign manager and is now Director of Central Intelligence, declared in an interview. Mr. Casey differed in his strongest terms thus far with the recollection of the White House chief of staff, James A. Baker 3d, that the private Carter debate papers used to help Mr. Reagan rehearse for the debate had come directly from Mr. Casey. 'I Know That's Dynamite' ''After being involved in seven Presidential campaigns, I know that's dynamite,'' Mr. Casey said emphatically in denying any knowledge of the Carter papers. ''I wouldn't tolerate it. I would@n't touch it with a 10-foot pole.''

The thorny controversy over whether consumers should be freely allowed to tape television programs off the air has been lying nearly dormant for 20 months, awaiting a ruling by the Supreme Court on whether such taping violates copyright laws. That decision, which could come as early as today, is likely to shape the future of the fast-growing home video industry, and the viewing habits of millions of Americans - even though Congress may have the final say. What is at stake is a business that this year is expected to reach sales of 3.5 million video cassette recorders, and 50 million blank tapes. The Electronic Industries Association estimated that by the end of the year, at least 8 million video cassette recorders will be in use in American homes. Nobody on either side of the controversy expects a ban on the sale of video cassette recorders to result from whatever the High Court rules. Rather, if the Supreme Court decides that home taping is a copyright infringement, the most likely remedy -either judicial or legislative - would be the imposition of a royalty surcharge on video cassette recorders and blank videotapes. Such royalties would raise the price of recorders and tapes. The revenues from the surcharges would be used to compensate copyright holders, such as the studios that produce the movies shown on television.

In a city bustling with high finance and low intrigue, Wang Guangying has drawn more than the usual curiosity. He heads the new Everbright Industrial Corporation, which is taking over a highrise floor in Hong Kong's gold-colored Far East Finance Center. Mr. Wang, the brother-in-law of China's late President Liu Shaoqi, has described himself modestly as chairman of a private corporation set up to import millions of dollars of Western technology for China's modernization. His genial refusal to disclose details about Everbright's assets and backers prompts an assumption that Mr. Wang is Peking's newest man of significance in town. His operation appears to be part of the latest Chinese strategy to keep Hong Kong prosperous by investing in its future.

Stock prices slumped yesterday as Friday's announcement of an increase in the basic money supply and the specter of a rise in interest rates combined to shake investor confidence. The Dow Jones industrial index ended the day off 16.73 points, at 1,208.53. It had been down almost 20 points an hour before the close. Declines outnumbered advances by a hefty 1,279 to 375.

An article yesterday on the job emergency program misstated the amount of Federal money New York City is to receive for community development. It is $952,000.

SOME people call them sherbets, some fruit ices, while others prefer the more fanciful term sorbet. But it's really too hot to quibble. Let's just call them exquisitely refreshing treats on sultry summer days and get on with it. There are technical differences between these icy concoctions - sherbets often call for the addition of milk, sorbets may have egg whites or whipped cream folded in - however it seems that, in this country at least, lexicology often takes a back seat to salesmanship, and the name that moves them fastest is used. For purposes of this discussion we will use the term sherbet, to describe a variety of frozen fruit desserts. There is no better way to capture the essence of summer's fresh fruit bounty than by making sherbet at home. While expensive electric ice cream machines make the task nearly effortless, there is no need to invest in one to try your hand at sherbet. Delicious versions can be made with a food processor, an electric mixer or even with a blender.

ALTHOUGH she looks perfectly healthy, 7-year-old Tracey Galindez of Trenton may be facing permanent learning disabilities. And all that her mother and father can do is wait. Tracey is a lead-poisoned child. When the Galindez family moved to the old three-story house they still rent on Second Street, Tracey was 2. She picked at the paint on her bedroom windowsill and tasted it. It was sweet, and she ate some.