Emily Dickinson Lexicon

KEDGE, n. [allied probably to cog and keg.]

A small anchor, used to keep a ship steady when riding in a harbor or river, and particularly at the turn of the tide, to keep her clear of her bower anchor, also to remove her from one part of a harbor to another, being carried out in a boat and let go, as in warping or kedging. [Sometimes written kedger.] – Mar. Dict.