[jjd-uk]

Yeah, maybe I'm reading too much in that but I had the impression that the back and forth annoyed him/her somehow. Although I don't see how, it's the only explanation that makes sense, imho.

They mentioned

my C++ skills are mediocre at best

so perhaps they felt the adjustments requested for the code to be in an acceptable state was beyond their capabilities. A lot of work in recent times has gone into improving code quality to provide a more solid foundation which is easier to maintain, so anything new must not undo or hinder these efforts.

Unfortunately it does mean the bar is now higher that must be cleared for code to be accepted. However it does mean that when something does get in, it's less likely break, and if it does break and author is not around to fix then it's easier for someone else to have a go.