Mason Dixon

On Monday , the 10th annual Mason-Dixon Fair kicks off in Delta, Pa., near the Maryland border. For six days, the event offers activities, contests and exhibits that mainly focus on agriculture. The fair features motorcycle and four-wheeler drag races, farm and home exhibits, draft horse and antique tractor pulls, a watermelon-eating contest, the Fair Princess competition, a parade, fireworks and more. Performers include Dark Whiskey, Detour, Re-Creation, Open Swine Show and The Legends.

The third wet winter weather system to pass through Maryland in a week was expected to add to the young season's snow tally Saturday, but a late start and some drier air could make it difficult except in areas north and west of Baltimore. Snow was beginning to taper off southwest of Baltimore by early afternoon. The National Weather Service is expecting an inch or less in the Baltimore area, with 1-2 inches further north and 2-4 inches possible along the Mason-Dixon Line. Rain and sleet are expected to mix in for areas along the Interstate 95 corridor and points south.

"Mason & Dixon," by Thomas Pynchon. Henry Holt 773 pages. $27.50.A new book by Thomas Pynchon is always an event. If his novels appear infrequently (17 years elapsed between the publication of "Gravity's Rainbow," in 1973, and "Vineland," in 1990), their author never appears at all: no interviews, no pictures. Pynchon's glamorous low profile forces his books to speak for themselves, and speak they do, at great length, often brilliantly, not always comprehensibly, setting generations of literature majors aflame with their labyrinthine plots and inspired language.

The 14th annual Mason-Dixon Fair will be held from July 9 to 14 in Delta, just over the state line that bears the fair's namesake. The fair, which celebrates the rich agricultural history of the region, will feature a range of contests and entertainment, including many varieties of tractor pulls, a Karaoke Idol competition, a performance by local Harford County band, Almost Certain, and midway games and rides. Other highlights of the fair include the crowning of the Mason-Dixon Fair Princess, Junior Miss Queen and Queen on Monday, July 9, and a traditional watermelon-eating contest on Thursday, July 12. Animal shows for goats, sheep, swine and rabbits will take place throughout the week, with participants including farmers from Delta and the surrounding areas of York County as well as participants from Lancaster County, Baltimore County and the areas surrounding Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

Thomas K. Ferguson, president and chief executive officer of Mason-Dixon Bancshares Inc., reported that first-quarter net income totaled $1,683,484, an increase of 45.7 percent over the same period in 1992.The return on assets for the first quarter of 1993 was 1.49 percent, compared with 1.02 percent in 1992. The return on equity totaled 17.97 percent, up from 13.27 percent for the same period in 1992.Earnings per share were up from 77 cents to $1.16.Mason-Dixon Bancshares has its headquarters in Westminster.

Mason-Dixon Bancshares Inc. yesterday announced that it has made a definitive agreement to pay $25.9 million in cash and stock for Bank Maryland Corp. of Towson.Mason-Dixon, parent of Carroll County Bank and Trust Co., will pay $12.81 in cash or its own stock for each of the 2.02 million shares of Bank Maryland. But the agreement requires that at least 50 percent of the Bank Maryland shareholders take stock.When Mason-Dixon and Bank Maryland announced an agreement in principle Oct. 21, the preliminary arrangement called for Mason-Dixon to pay $26.3 million in cash and stock, about $13 per share.

A group of shareholders who want Mason-Dixon Bancshares Inc. to consider selling the company filed a counter-lawsuit against bank executives alleging that they breached their fiduciary duty.The shareholders, who formed the Concerned Shareholder Group, allege that the Westminster-based banking company has lagged in performance because of "the reckless procedures and efforts of the current management and Mason-Dixon's board of directors," according to the filing in U.S. District Court in Baltimore.

Mason-Dixon Bancshares' net income rose 10 percent in the first quarter, fueled by a jump in loans and fees it charges customers for products and services, the banking company said yesterday.The Westminster-based Mason-Dixon made $2.51 million in the quarter ended March 31, compared with $2.27 million earned during the corresponding period a year earlier. Net income per share rose 14 percent to 49 cents in the quarter, compared with 43 cents in 1997."We are happy, it is just a matter of keeping our heads pointed north," said Thomas K. Ferguson, Mason-Dixon's president and chief executive.

Mason Dixon Bancshares Inc., parent corporation of Carroll County Bank and Trust Co., has declared a dividend of 34 cents per share, which will be paid to stockholders of record as of tomorrow.Earnings for the six months ending June 30 were $3,480,067, an increase of 2 percent over the same period last year.Net income per share was $2.40, compared with $2.34 for the same period last year.Carroll County Bank and Trust Co. operates 11 offices in Carroll County and an office in Ellicott City.

Mason-Dixon Bankshares Inc. is selling a branch operated by its subsidiary bank to Sandy Spring Bancorp of Olney and leaving the Washington, D.C., market."

The Mason Dixon Business Association will welcome in the new year on Wednesday, Jan. 18, beginning at 11:30 a.m. at Buontempo Brothers at 1 South Main in Bel Air. Tony Belcastro, of WSMT Insurance, will be the guest speaker. He will be discussing the differences in personal and business insurance as well as the advantages of working with an independent agent. Guests are welcome. Lunch will be served at noon, cost is $15. For more information call Susan Miller at Dale Miller & Son, Inc. at 717-382-4811.

The Tuff Truck Race was held at the Mason Dixon Fair Grounds Oct. 22 and 20 competitors vied for the top spots in both 2- and 4-wheel-drive categories and a chance to take home the Shoot Out trophy. The 2-wheel-drive class saw Daryl Eshleman take first place with Jeremiah Creasy in second and Josh Eller in third. The 4-wheel-drive class had Jeremiah Creasy in first, John Peters in second and Josh Eller in third. Event organizers said the crowd loved the Dukes of Hazard chase at intermission as well as the Final Shoot Out featuring head to head racing with close finishes.

Northern Harford State Sen. Barry Glassman warned a local business group recently that some key issues from the 2011 Maryland General Assembly, like gay marriage and a gasoline tax increase, are likely to surface again during the special session planned in October to approve legislative redistricting. During his appearance last month as the featured speaker at the Mason-Dixon Business Association's monthly luncheon, Glassman outlined some of the highlights of the regular 2011 legislative session and also talked about what may be in store for the future.

On a small sheet of ice, ringed by a rustic frame of cattails, the boys of winter play their game. The pond hockey season below the Mason-Dixon line can have the lifespan of a mayfly, so they embrace the moment with all the energy of an end-to-end rush. This is hockey as nature intended: pure, uncomplicated, joyous. No one complains about having to shovel the surface clear of snow or when slush soaks sweatpants as a skidding puck throws up a rooster tail of spray. Backpacks and winter boots mark goals and everyone is a referee.

Robert C. Schutz III, a longtime umpire who worked countless college and high school games throughout the state and was a retired security supervisor, died Monday of heart failure at Northwest Hospital Center. The longtime Randallstown resident was 86. Mr. Schutz, the son of German immigrant parents, was born in Baltimore and raised on Frankford Avenue in Hamilton. He was a 1940 graduate of Polytechnic Institute and enlisted the next year in the Marine Corps. He was a rear-gunner with the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing in the Pacific Theater during World War II and fought at the Battle of Midway.

On Monday , the 10th annual Mason-Dixon Fair kicks off in Delta, Pa., near the Maryland border. For six days, the event offers activities, contests and exhibits that mainly focus on agriculture. The fair features motorcycle and four-wheeler drag races, farm and home exhibits, draft horse and antique tractor pulls, a watermelon-eating contest, the Fair Princess competition, a parade, fireworks and more. Performers include Dark Whiskey, Detour, Re-Creation, Open Swine Show and The Legends.

Piney Branch Country Club's women are branching out this season.For the first time in the club's history, the women will take part inthe Mason-Dixon District Golf Association competitions. Included in the lineup are five clubs from Maryland, two from Pennsylvania and one from Virginia."We hade been considering this move for a couple of years," said Connie Henderson, Piney Branch representative in the Mason-Dixon event. "It should give women's golf in Carroll County a major boost."Henderson is the reigning women's stroke-play champion at Piney Branch.

The Mason and Dixon Line, to William Ecenbarger, is "the world's most famous boundary." Alongside the Great Wall of China or in northern Ireland, perhaps not so; in this country, where the border between Pennsylvania and Maryland used to separate North from South, today the Potomac River is a more realistic dividing line. Years ago, Ecenbarger, a newspaper and magazine writer, developed an interest in the Mason and Dixon Line; at intervals, he has walked at least half its 365 marshy-craggy miles, checked out its milestones and 5-mile crownstones, photographed it, explored the print and manuscript sources (though skirting Thomas Pynchon's 1997 novel, "Mason and Dixon")

Summer fair Cross the Mason-Dixon line anytime next week to be a part of the Mason-Dixon Fair. The seventh annual fair will begin Monday and run through July 16. The week's events include games and activities for children, tractor pulls, cattle shows and rides. The fair will crown its queen and Miss Mason and Mr. Dixon on Monday. Also, the animal dress-up contest is July 15. There will be nightly entertainment from bands and a performance by Deana Carter on July 15. The festivities culminate on July 16 with the fireman's parade and fireworks to follow.