What does the phrase "There are more ways of killing a cat than by choking it with cream" mean as used in paragraph 12, and how does it relates to the story's meaning? ( the story is hermann the irascible)

Armed with invisible ink, a cipher system, and a passion to end the war and preserve the union, elizabeth van lew became butler's eyes and ears in the confederate capital city. truth be told, however, she became much more than that. she became a spymaster, the person responsible for running a network of agents, couriers, and safe houses that was very active during the war. in addition to the spying, elizabeth van lew continued to maintain her church hill home as a safe house and something of a local union spy headquarters. —the dark game, paul janeczko what is the central idea of this passage? van lew’s home was used as a safe house, which was critical to the confederacy. van lew had a passion to end the war and preserve the union. van lew was a spymaster, a leading force in the espionage activities for the union. van lew did not enjoy working for general butler.