In "Two Years Before the Mast" Dana tells about having to go aloft to apply tar to lines to extend their life. He had to go aloft with a long line that had to be "rove" throug a block.(pulley to you and me.)
There are several meanings to "rove"
rove 1
vi.
roved, rov4ing 5ME roven, orig. an archery term as vt. < ?6
1 to wander about; go from place to place, esp. over an extensive area, with no particular course or destination; roam
2 to look around: said of the eyes
vt.
to wander over; roam through !to rove the woods"
n.
the act of roving; a ramble

rove 2
vt.
roved, rov4ing 5< ?6 to twist (fibers) together and draw out into roving before spinning
n.
Brit. var. of ROVING

rove 3
vt.
alt. pt. & pp. of REEVE2

reeve 1
n.
5ME reve, earlier irefe < OE gerefa < ge3 + base of *rof, row, number6
1 in English history,
a) the chief officer, under the king, of a town or district b) the overseer and chief peasant of a manor
2 the elected head of a village or town council in certain Canadian provinces

reeve 2
vt.
rove or reeved, rove or rov$en, reev4ing 5prob. < Du reven, to reef, in sense “use a rope in or as in reefing”6 Naut.
1 to pass (the end of a line) through a block, ring, etc.
2 to fasten by passing through or around something
3 to pass a line through (a block, ring, etc.)

reeve 3
n.
5? < irreg. pl. of RUFF16 the female sandpiper

the act of roving; a ramble

It also had a traditional usage implying the sexual act, taken from the image no doubt of passing the end of a rope through a block or ring ~ hence the punning use in a traditional English folk song with a refrain something like:

"A-roving, a-roving, since roving's been my ru-i-in,
I'll go no more a-roving with you, fair maid!"

The sailor singing the refrain was thus refusing to either go walking (or anything else) with the abandoned maid!


(not sure of the words in detail, this just from memory so ycliu)