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"shoulder fired firearms as rifles and uses the term gun to refer to artillery pieces. Aside from angry drill instructors, the distinction is meaningless. If someone chastises you for using the term gun, ask him what they use in a twenty one gun salute."

The truth of the matter is there is no such thing as a 21 gun salute for a military funeral. It is the most distorted phrase there is. Even people in the military screw it up. The thing you are referring to that is done at military funerals is not officially called a 21 gun salute, it is called a rifle salute and does not have to be 21 volleys. The gun salute is an old naval tradition of firing your ships cannons harmlessly out to sea to expend all of your ammo. The 21 part started when ships started shooting 21 volleys of their cannons for heads of state.