THE COMPREHENSIVE exhibition of Chinese jade at the Arden Gallery is the first of its kind, not only in New York, but as far as the present writer knows, in the world. The fact that it follows closely the unforgettable exhibition of Chinese bronzes at the Metropolitan Museum of Art was a great challenge to the sponsors. The author accepts the task of reviewing this exhibition reluctantly since he had to select, catalogue and arrange the display of the objects. Nevertheless, he takes great pleasure in having the opportunity to repeat here that a public debt of gratitude is due private collectors of the United States. To the author's astonishment, he found that none of them considered any request, even for the most unique pieces, unreasonable. This generosity is partly due to the fact that the proceeds of the enterprise will help to alleviate the sufferings of the very people whose artistic genius created in the past that which we admire in the present, but this must also be regarded as a general American trend, which tends to place art exhibitions more and more in the front line of such manifestations.